


Something About Him

by kurama3173



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Crushes, Developing Relationship, Eventual Smut, Fluff, M/M, Training Camp, awkward dorks, i can't come up with good titles sorry, neighborhood association, various karasuno players appear in this but i didn't tag them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-18
Updated: 2015-12-16
Packaged: 2018-05-02 06:12:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 23,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5237417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kurama3173/pseuds/kurama3173
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ukai never expected to warm up to that pain-in-the-ass teacher this much, let alone so fast. Takeda hardly counted on caring so much for the cranky shopkeeper that had become Karasuno's coach, but here he was. </p><p>The development of Ukai and Takeda's relationship throughout their time with the Karasuno volleyball team.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Close Quarters

Ukai paused in the parking lot for a few minutes before getting out of his car to join the Karasuno training camp. Not for the first time, he was less than thrilled with Takeda Ittetsu for talking him into taking this coaching gig. Spending several days away from home, herding teenage boys and sharing a lodge with them had never been his idea of a good time. But, his word was his word, and the kids really did seem passionate about the sport, so eventually Ukai emerged from his car.

He had arrived later than the rest, thanks to his shift at the store. Even from outside, he could hear the boys talking and laughing, maybe having dinner? He hoped he hadn’t missed the whole meal, because he sure hadn’t had one since noon.

Once he was inside, Keishin only had to follow the commotion down the hall to find the team. His heart sank a little when he opened the door, and there was barely any food left on the table. Dammit.

“Coach is here!” Tanaka announced. The rest of the team echoed greetings as he came in and set his bag down.

“Ukai-kun, you made it!” Takeda said cheerfully. “I saved you a plate, are you hungry?” Keishin had never liked the teacher more.

“Yeah, I haven’t eaten in hours,” he said gratefully. “I didn’t take anything from the store, either, cause I’m already skipping out on my folks for the next few days.” He sat down, and Takeda handed him a plate of food.

“Here you go, I hope your family isn’t in too much of a bind with you gone,” Takeda said. Ukai shrugged. His mom wasn’t exactly happy about it, but it’s not like he didn’t give her plenty of warning. He kind of wished she’d just hire a part-timer already.

“They’ll survive,” is all he said before saying his thanks and digging in.

\---

After the meal was finished, and the dishes were done, the team went upstairs to set up for bed. Keishin followed Takeda to the smaller room they’d be sharing, and set his bag down against the wall.

“Ukai-kun, do you want to bathe first? We have a bathroom to ourselves, thankfully.” Takeda was in the middle of setting up his futon across the room. He was still wearing that cloth on his head, presumably from when he was cooking or cleaning.

“Nah, you go ahead. I think I’m gonna try and finish up this damn starting lineup so we have it for tomorrow,” Keishin sighed, sitting down with his notes. He really didn’t want to upset anyone this soon after becoming the coach, but it was his job to do what was best. Still… it was hard to say _what_ was the best decision to make. If he gave Sugawara’s position to Kageyama, would the other upperclassmen be frustrated? Would they not trust Kageyama? In terms of ability, Kageyama was a shoo-in, but that didn’t account for how well the team would react. If the boys resented Ukai  for picking him over Sugawara, that would make things even more frustrating.

Keishin stood up after a while, and headed down the hall to the vending machine for a coffee. He really would have preferred a cigarette, but he was pretty sure the school technically owned this place. He got himself a can and took a long sip. Then, from behind him:

“Coach Ukai?” Sugawara. Fuuuck.

\---

Honestly, talking with Sugawara about the starting setter position did a lot to put his mind at ease. He didn’t have to worry anymore about breaking the news to the third year, and Ukai was confident that the rest of the team would support his decision if Sugawara did too.

“You look happy,” Takeda observed as he came back in from the bathroom. Keishin was setting up his own futon across the room from Takeda’s, and humming to himself.  

“I gotta hand it to you Sensei, these kids are more than I gave ‘em credit for. Sugawara found me in the hall and told me to start Kageyama if that’s what would help the team win.” Takeda smiled.

“What did I tell you?” he chuckled. “So, have you made your mind up?”

“Yeah… I’m going with Kageyama. If it doesn’t work out, we can make Sugawara starter later, but I wanna see how they play with Kageyama for this match at least,” Keishin said. He fished his towel out of his bag, and plugged his phone in. “I’m gonna get washed up, feel free to shut the lights off if you want.” He went down the hall to bathe, feeling much less apprehensive about this whole training camp deal. Now he could focus on getting those brats ready to grind Naoi’s team into the dirt. 


	2. Little Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takeda starts to notice the little things about Ukai that make him unique.

Once Ukai was out of the room, Takeda stood up and pulled his futon over next to the coach’s. He pulled his own notes out, and peeked at what Ukai had left sitting out, but he didn’t rifle through the rest. The younger man’s handwriting was surprisingly neat, he noticed. Takeda didn’t know quite how to interpret the play charts just yet, but he intended to learn just as much at this camp as the team.

“Uh,” Ukai said from the doorway. Takeda turned. The blond hair, usually held back by his headband, was loose and damp, framing his face. It made Ukai look younger, and a little wilder, he thought.

“Oh, that was quick,” Ittetsu said. “I moved over here so we could talk about our plans for the camp- that is, if you’re not too tired.” He realized it might seem a little weird that he’d moved his bed right next to Ukai’s, but the coach didn’t seem to dwell on it.

“Sure, I just had that coffee so I’m up,” he agreed, sitting down. Ukai brushed some of his hair behind his ear, and a few strands fell back toward his face. It was a good look for him, Ittetsu thought. “You been looking at my play charts?”

Right. They were talking about the camp. Why the hell had he gotten distracted, studying was his thing. “Well, yeah, but I don’t really know how to read them,” Takeda admitted. Ukai raised an eyebrow at him.

“They’re pretty self-explanatory, there’s not much to know besides the positions. LI is libero, S is the setter, here, I’ll just write ‘em down.” Ukai picked up a pen, and tore a page out of his notebook. He wrote down all the position abbreviations, and handed it over. “The arrows just indicate movement. This here is a basic quick…”

Ukai went on to explain the play charts in a little more detail than necessary, but Takeda was happy to listen. He wanted to be useful to the team beyond organization and paper pushing, and Ukai obviously knew his stuff more than he’d give himself credit for.

“You know Sensei, you really don’t have to learn strategy. You’re  doing these kids a favor just by signing off on their club,” the coach pointed out after a while. Takeda frowned.

“I’m their advisor, I want to be able to do more than that,” he said. “Besides, volleyball is a really interesting game once you get into the nuaces of it. I want to know more about it.”

“Heh, I guess you are a teacher, learning is kinda your thing anyway,” Ukai chuckled. “But I’m about to pass out, so let’s pack it up, okay?” He started tucking his notes back into his bag.

“True, and remember, once I commit to something, I commit fully,” Ittetsu reminded him. Ukai groaned as he laid down, golden hair fanning out on his pillow.

“You don’t have to remind me, I would be at home in my own bed right now if you hadn’t committed to bringing me on board,” the blond snarked.

“Erk- Are you still mad about that?” Takeda stood up to turn off the lights. There, now he wasn’t looking at Ukai’s hair. “Cause you sounded pretty excited during the Neighborhood Association match the other day.” He laid down on his own futon, and settled under the covers.

“I’m just giving you a hard time,” Ukai said, yawning. “I woulda kept telling you no forever if I really didn’t wanna do it. You really were a pain in the neck, though.” Takeda laughed softly.

“Goodnight, Ukai-kun.” He was pretty sleepy too, he realized.

“Night.”

\---

The training camp went off without a hitch. The boys worked hard, the uniforms looked great, and Coach Ukai was a fantastic fit for the team. Plus, Ittetsu had the opportunity to learn a ton about the game of volleyball. Some of the kids were even starting to ask him for advice, which made his teacher heart happy.

At the end of the last day before the match with Nekoma, Takeda laid down with a happy sigh. Ukai came in from the shower, shirtless this time, and sat down next to him. They hadn’t bothered to move their futons apart since the first night.

“I think you’re having more fun than anyone here, Sensei,” the coach commented. He smelled faintly of tobacco even though he’d just bathed. Maybe he’d snuck a cigarette just before his bath.

“I’m learning a lot, and I really feel like the team is taking shape. It’s exciting,” Takeda hummed. He watched as a stray drop of water fell from Ukai’s hair, and rolled down his chest. The younger man was quite fit, which wasn’t really a surprise. But ah, he was getting distracted by weird things again.

“Yeah, I think they’re gonna give Nekoma a run for their money tomorrow,” the blond agreed, grinning.

“Are you really quitting after tomorrow’s match?” Takeda didn’t want to see him go. Finding another coach would be tough, and the team meshed so well with him.

“Hn,” was Ukai’s only response. Well, it wasn’t a no. It was really tempting to try and sway him toward staying, but Takeda had already inconvenienced him a lot for this job… Maybe another day. For right now, he’d let the man be.

“Well, I’m about ready to hit the hay,” Ittetsu said. “Can I get the lights?” Ukai stretched his arms over his head, hands clasped and chest out. Ittetsu caught himself staring, and blushed lightly. Inappropriate, he thought.

“Knock yourself out,” Ukai said, lying down. Takeda nodded and moved to turn the lights off. He was almost grateful for the darkness, now he couldn’t see to appreciate his coworker’s admittedly attractive features. This really wasn’t good. He didn’t need this when he was trying to give Ukai reasons to stick around. Were his reasons for trying to keep the coach on board even virtuous? Gah. Takeda laid back down and tried to go back to thinking about the match, but try as he might, he couldn’t get the image of Ukai’s defined arms and back muscles out of his head. This really, really wasn’t good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figure I'll kinda bounce the POV from Ukai to Takeda instead of keeping it strictly on one of them. Both of them are going to be terribly inept and their thoughts will be fun to explore!
> 
> Also on elisabomb.tumblr.com


	3. Failed Espionage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Take-chan what are you doing

Despite getting shut out by Nekoma at the practice match, Ukai was in a great mood following the training camp. Coaching was really turning out to be way more fun and way more suited to him than he’d ever thought it would be. Plus, Takeda-sensei  was an excellent co-coach. It was hard to believe that the teacher had only just started learning about volleyball recently, with how perceptive he could already be about certain aspects of the game. Ukai felt like he had a partner out there, someone to bounce ideas off of and discuss his concerns with, instead of just coaching solo. Hell, even old man Nekomata had recognized how remarkable Takeda was.

Remarkable, yeah, that was one word for the earnest, big-hearted teacher that had weaseled into his life. He was a bit clumsy, and a bit awkward, but Keishin really enjoyed his company. He found himself thinking about Takeda even when volleyball was off his mind. The messy hair, wide eyes, small stature, gentle voice… yeah, it was a little concerning how often Ukai was thinking about him.

The neighborhood association game was a good way to get his mind off that sort of thing though. Volleyball had pretty much consumed his life lately, sure, but this was his chance to get together with his friends and play himself. He had even noticed some improvement in his game since he’d started coaching.

“Ukai, you’re up to serve,” Takinoue said, tossing him the ball. Keishin spun it in his hands, and backed up behind the line.  He tossed, following the ball with his eyes, and neatly hit it over the net, aiming between two of the opposing players. They received well enough, and soon the ball was on its way back over. Keishin got into position as the libero hit it upward towards him. He set it, giving the left wing spiker a nice, easy toss. The spiker smashed the ball past the blockers, and Keishin fist-pumped as it bounced across the ground.

_CRASH._

The entire neighborhood association group paused, and looked toward the window where the sound had come from. Shimada poked his head outside, and his eyes widened at the sight of a small man in a pile of crates that had presumably been stacked until moments ago.

“Takeda-san?”

“What?!” Keishin exclaimed, running outside. Takeda sat up, rubbing his shin. “What the hell are you doing, sensei?!” he squawked as Shimada stifled a laugh.

“I’m sorry- I just thought how I’d never actually seen you play volleyball, and I didn’t want to interrupt anything-“ Takeda sputtered, face flushed from embarrassment.

“So you decided to spy on me?! You know if you didn’t look so little and harmless people would call the cops on you when you did weird shit like this!” Shimada had retreated back inside to chuckle over Ukai’s yelling. The man could never react to anything calmly.

“I didn’t mean-“ Takeda stammered. Ukai stomped over and grabbed his wrist, pulling him to his feet.

“You’re not hurt from falling, are you?” he asked, pulling the flustered teacher toward the door. Takeda tried to resist for a moment but it was pointless, Ukai was a lot stronger than him.

“I- no, I banged my shin but that’s about all. I should really get g-“

“Here,” Keishin commanded, pulling him through the door and over to the bleachers of the community gym. “If you wanna watch, sit inside like a normal person, okay? I don’t mind, you could’a just asked.” Takeda sat down on the bench, and wrung his hands. Everyone was looking at him, he hadn’t felt this awkward since probably high school.

“What are you lookin’ at?! It’s still my serve,” Keishin barked at the neighborhood team. He grabbed the ball and made his way behind the service line again, this time hitting a stronger and more reckless serve.  

From the sidelines, Takeda watched the game intently, eyes inevitably following Ukai. That’s right, he’d forgotten that the coach was a setter. From the looks of things, he was a pretty consistent one too. His team responded well to his sets anyway, and rarely asked him to change how he was tossing. And more importantly, Ukai looked happy here playing volleyball with his friends.

The set ended with Keishin’s side victorious, beating the opposing side in straight sets. The blond lifted the hem of his shirt to dab sweat from his forehead, flashing his lightly defined abs to the teacher sitting on the bench.

“Hey sensei,” Keishin called from the court. Takeda’s cheeks dusted pink, and looked up from Ukai’s stomach to his face.

“Yes?”

“We’re done for the night,” Ukai said. “Did you walk here?”

“Ah, yes, I did,” Takeda responded.

“Me too, we’re in the same direction, right? Let’s get going.” Keishin walked over to the bench and grabbed his drawstring bag. He took out a water bottle and drank from it for a moment before shrugging on his track jacket. Takeda was still a little embarrassed to look him in the face for long after getting caught like that, but he followed the coach out the door. “I hope you’re happy. The guys are gonna riff on me for that for weeks.”

“I’m sorry,” Ittetsu said sheepishly. “I didn’t mean for anyone to know I was there.”

“Jeez, that’s what you’re sorry for,” Ukai  grumbled. “Seriously though, it’s not a big deal. Those guys rag on me for everything. Takinoue still hasn’t let go of some shit that I did in high school. But if you wanna come next time, just say so, okay?”

“Okay,” Takeda agreed.

“Why’d you wanna see me play anyhow? It’s just a way for us to pass the time, not like we play for any kind of stakes.”

“Oh, no real reason, I suppose,” Ittetsu chuckled. “I just thought it would be interesting to see you play. You’re pretty good, Ukai-kun.” Ukai lit up a cigarette and took a long drag, exhaling up toward the dark sky.

“I’m alright,” he said. “I’m not bad. Not great. Though this coaching gig is making me play better, I think.” He still didn’t quite get why Takeda cared about his casual games, but really he wasn’t all that surprised. Sensei had done plenty of research on him prior to him accepting the coaching job, too. Maybe it was just in his nature to be insatiably, worryingly curious. It did feel oddly nice to have someone interested in his game though, Keishin thought. Nobody really asked him about his personal interests and hobbies lately, and having Takeda so interested in this… well, it felt good. Takeda was a little overzealous, sure, but really it just showed that he cared.

“Would you prefer if I didn’t come again?” the teacher asked.

“What? No, if I didn’t want you to come I wouldn’t have told you to ask about it,” Keishin said. “Feel free. I don’t get why, but it’s no skin off my back.”

“Okay,” Takeda hummed. He sounded satisfied with that answer.

When they reached Ukai’s family store, the blond stopped to fish out his keys. He still lived in the loft above the shop with his parents, it was easier to help out with the business that way.

“See you later Sensei,” Keishin yawned. “Get home safe.” Takeda’s heart thumped.

“I will,” he said, smiling brightly. “Goodnight Ukai-kun.” He turned and kept walking toward his own home, the words ‘get home safe’ echoing in his head. He smiled to himself. Sleep tight, Ukai-kun, he thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've wanted to write this idea for a while :D Takeda is going to get himself arrested one of these days.


	4. Frame by Frame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ukai and Takeda review some footage of past games in a very professional manner.

As the Inter-high approached, Ukai became increasingly bogged down with work from his jobs and his team. Getting the boys ready for actual matches was going to take dedication, and that meant watching tapes, researching the other teams, dealing with problems in Karasuno’s offense and defense, and more. All while balancing morning and evening shifts for his family. It was absolutely exhausting.

When Takeda pointed out how wiped he must be, he was almost annoyed. That teacher had gotten him into this with incessant pestering, after all. But Takeda seemed genuinely sympathetic, and it really didn’t hurt when he showed up at the store with alcohol.

Keishin’s mind, when not preoccupied with everything else on his plate, often wandered to the young teacher. Yeah, admittedly, Takeda was weird and had questionable methods, but Keishin couldn’t help becoming attached to him. The spark of determination in his eyes when he decided to pursue something, the cheerful words of encouragement he had for just about everybody… There wasn’t a cruel bone in Sensei’s body, and being around someone like that was really refreshing.

And why the hell had Takeda been so intent to see him play volleyball, anyway? That’s what he still couldn’t pin down. There was nothing really interesting about watching a bunch of has-beens mess around playing the sport they liked in high school. Did Takeda spy on all of his friends’ leisure activities? Come to think of it, did Takeda even have that many friends? He never talked about spending time with them, if he did. Ukai started to wonder if he was one of the only friends the teacher had; maybe that’s why he was so interested in trivial stuff like that.

After the store had closed one evening, Keishin’s phone rang in his pocket, and he took it out to glance at the screen.

“Hello, what’s up Sensei?” he answered.

“Hello Ukai-kun, I got the tapes from past Karasuno games, as requested,” Takeda said brightly. “Sorry for calling this late, I hope you weren’t already in bed.”

“Nah, I’m old and tired but not that old and tired,” Keishin replied. “Shit, you could even bring ‘em over now if you want. I don’t have to work at the farm tomorrow, so I’ve got some time before I have to get to bed.” He didn’t expect Takeda to actually come over this late on a school night, but fuck it, he was bored. He might as well offer.

“Okay! I’ve got one in particular I’d really like to see,” the teacher said, somewhat deviously. Keishin didn’t like that tone at all. When that tone came out, it meant Takeda had a plan, and he was probably gonna get his way. Keishin’s eyes widened when he realized: tapes from his own high school games could still be around. Oh no, no no no no he was _not_ about to watch videos of his sweaty, teenage self running around in shorts. Especially not with his co-coach, for fuck’s sake. Of course, if Takeda did in fact have videos of his high school games, there was jack shit he could do to stop him from watching them on his own. Ukai was doomed.

“Ukai-kun? Are you still there?” Takeda asked after a moment of silence.

“Yeah,” he sighed. “You know where the door to the loft is, above the store, right?”

“Yep. Is your family going to be bothered by me coming by?”

“Nah. My parents are out right now, they probably won’t be home until late. Just knock on the door and I’ll let you in.”

“Okay, will do. See you soon,” Takeda said.

“Later.” Keishin hung up, and stuffed his phone back into his pocket. Maybe he was wrong about the videos, maybe Takeda had amusing footage of the seniors as first-years or something.

\---

He wasn’t wrong about the videos.

“Come on, Ukai-kun!” Takeda laughed, reaching for the disc that Keishin was holding over his head. “I just want to see it real quick!”

“You are not gonna watch me fumble around with my dumb haircut and skinny arms, especially not in my own house!” Keishin griped, standing on tiptoe. He held the disc as high as he could, and Takeda practically pressed flush against him trying to get at it. “This video is going to the bottom of the ocean where it belongs, next time I get out to the beach.”

“Noooo,” Takeda protested. “You can’t destroy it, that would be such a waste!” He leaned harder against Ukai, he could almost reach it… But then the coach lost his footing, and staggered backward into the wall with a thud. Takeda fell against him, smooshing his face into Ukai’s chest and pressing his glasses painfully into his nose. “Ow… sorry about that Ukai-kun, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Keishin grumbled. He felt his face warm up as he realized how close their bodies were. Takeda was still leaning against him, adjusting his glasses to make sure the nosepads weren’t bent out of shape. The teacher’s small body didn’t weigh a thing. Keishin was still holding the disc above his head, but he’d by now forgotten about the video. “Did you bust your glasses? You really gotta be careful.”

Takeda regained his balance and finally stepped back, sliding his glasses back into place. “No, they’re intact. I haven’t broken a pair in quite a few years actually! I think my optician has been steering me toward more durable glasses lately,” he laughed nervously. His cheeks were flushed too, and he was hesitant to make eye contact with Ukai.

“Why doesn’t it surprise me that you’re prone to breaking your glasses?” Keishin said. “I’m surprised you don’t just go for contacts.”

“But I like my glasses,” Takeda insisted. “Even if my students tease me for them sometimes, I think they suit me.” Ukai couldn’t really argue with that. Maybe it was just the stereotype about glasses being for academics, but they fit Sensei very well.

“You’d probably lose a contact in a urinal every other week, anyway,” Keishin sassed.

“Hey!”

“You know I’m right. Anyway, we gonna watch this dumb recording or not?” He pulled a cigarette and his lighter from his pocket, and lit up. Takeda smiled.

“Yes!” he said victoriously. Keishin muttered to himself as he made his way over to the dvd player and slid the disk into the slot. He wasn’t wild about this. But it was more exhausting to say no to Sensei than it was worth, a fact he knew very well by now. He turned on the tv and configured it to the dvd player before plopping onto the couch with a sour expression. Takeda came over and sat next to him, watching the screen excitedly.

An image appeared of the gym the spring tournament prelims used to be held in, with Karasuno and Ougiminami players warming up on the court. Takeda scanned the Karasuno team, looking for Ukai, and Ukai tried to focus on how awkward and gangly Shimada looked instead of watching himself.

“Oh- is that you?” Takeda asked, leaning forward to point to a young Keishin. The blond groaned.

“Yeah, that’s me,” he admitted. “I don’t know what I was thinking with that damn buzzcut, it didn’t suit me at all. I look just like Tanaka.” Takeda chuckled.

“I don’t think it’s bad, though you do look better with longer hair.” Keishin sighed, watching as the team formed up for the start of the game. So far this wasn’t so bad. Takeda wasn’t teasing him or pointing out how ‘adorable’ he was or anything like that. Still, it was weird to watch himself as a kid.

The game started, and on screen, the young Ukai made his first toss. “Ugh. My form was crap,” Keishin groused. “Did you see how much the spiker had to compensate for that toss?”

“Ukai-kun, the point of watching this wasn’t so you could rip yourself apart,” Takeda reminded him.

“Then what the hell was the point?”

“Well- the point was I wanted to see it.”

“You’re not even gonna try and come up with an excuse?!” Keishin crossed his arms, exhaling a puff of smoke. Takeda only laughed, and kept watching.

“It would be dishonest,” he said. “And really, we don’t have to watch this much longer. I just wanted to see you during your time with the club. It was a big part of your life, was it not?” Ukai felt his chest tighten a little. Again, with this. Why did Takeda care about these things? Keishin wasn’t used to talking about himself, or having this kind of interest shown toward him. Despite how inconvenient it was that Sensei kept digging for this kind of information, it was comforting. Takeda honestly, earnestly cared about Keishin and the things that were important to him. He went looking for ways to understand Keishin better. And how was he repaying him? He wasn’t, really. He was bitching and moaning about how Sensei went about this, mostly. And had Keishin ever bothered to learn more about Takeda than what was offered up front?

“Sensei,” he said more quietly than usual. Takeda looked at him. He took a long drag on his cigarette, and blew the smoke out through his nose. “I dunno why you’re so invested in this sort of thing… but thanks, I guess. Feels like I matter to you. So… sorry for being so pissy  about it.” He didn’t make eye contact with the teacher the whole time he spoke, but when he finished, he glanced up to see Takeda smiling softly at him.

“You do matter to me, Ukai-kun,” Takeda said honestly. His cheeks were flushed again, that seemed to happen whenever people praised him. “I think you’re a good, hardworking person. I wanted to get to know you a little better outside of work, but I guess my methods are pretty weird.” He laughed nervously, and Keishin felt a pang of guilt.

“It’s fine,” he said, scowling at the tv. His pulse had sped up, and he was pretty sure he was blushing again. This sort of conversation was never his strong point. “I. Care about you too.” Takeda smiled wider. He stood up, and to Keishin’s surprise, switched off the video.

“We don’t have to watch any more of that. Maybe we could put on one of the others, and get some work done?” the teacher suggested. Ukai nodded, feeling slightly disappointed. It felt like he never actually spent time around Takeda unless it was work-related in some way, which was fine. Except that now, he was thinking about what he could ask to get to know the man better. What were Takeda Ittetsu’s hobbies? What made him happy? What had drawn him to Japanese literature? Suddenly work sounded like a total drag.

“Sure, let’s watch a few from the year Karasuno went to nationals,” said Keishin. He stood up and looked through the dvds that Takeda had brought. “Ah, here we go, here’s their prefectural match against Datekou.” He went over and popped the disc into the player. Takeda pulled out his notebook, and as Ukai returned to his seat, he could swear the teacher had scooted closer to the center, closer to where he sat.

The video began, and soon, the two of them were in coaching mode. Ah well, Keishin thought. He’d have other days to make it up to Sensei and find out more about him. One of these days, he’d take him out for a drink and just listen. Takeda deserved at least that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be from Takeda's perspective! It'll actually start picking up speed here soon, someone might actually acknowledge their gay thoughts o:


	5. What if?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They can't run from the gay thoughts forever.

That night, Takeda went home feeling happy and light. He'd always loved his job, but working together with Ukai was a whole new level of rewarding. Their personalities and work ethics played off each other well, but it was more than that; Ukai was a valuable friend.

Making friends was something Ittetsu had never excelled at, despite his best efforts. Perhaps it was because of his best efforts, maybe he came on too strong, and tried too hard. The other teachers tolerated him, sure. But he wasn't really close with any of them, and it was a little disheartening to never be able to discuss work with a good pal.

But now he had Ukai. Due to how they'd started off, Ittetsu hadn't expected the blond to like him much. He had been prepared for a cordial, professional relationship, which would have been fine as long as the team had a coach.

Takeda arrived at his apartment and kicked his shoes off, heading straight to his room to change into pajamas. It was so much later than he usually went to bed in school nights. He probably should have come home earlier, but duty called, and... Ukai was great company. He had been ever since they started working together, really. Volleyball practice had become Ittetsu's favorite part of the day thanks to the grumpy coach. He might even go so far to say that Ukai was his closest friend.

Friend. Yeah.

Ittetsu turned the lights off and climbed into bed, setting his glasses aside. He thought back to earlier in the evening, when he and Ukai had lost their balance. Sure, it sucked when he'd smashed his glasses into his face, but what he really remembered was Ukai's broad chest, his distinctive scent under the tobacco, and the way he'd sounded asking Ittetsu if he was okay.

Takeda felt himself blushing at the memory. It was hard to deny anymore that he held some feelings for the man. At first he'd pushed the notion out of his mind, dismissing it as superficial attraction. For a while he'd convinced himself that Ukai was just a handsome guy and anyone would notice, it didn't mean anything at all. But it wasn't a strong jawline or nice arms that made his heart skip when Ukai texted him unexpectedly, and he knew that. It was more about the sweet, responsible person beneath that rough exterior- a man who frequently worked 15 hour days without a complaint, who nagged his team to make sure they were all eating and sleeping properly, who sang and mumbled to himself when he thought nobody was listening. Yeah. There was a lot about Ukai that caught his attention nowadays, and as long as there were opportunities to spend time with him, Ittetsu was going to take them.

He didn't really expect anything would ever come of his feelings, but hey. Takeda could at least enjoy their friendship and proximity- there was no harm in that, right?

\---

For a while, Ittetsu was able to ignore his crush. They became so busy leading up to the inter-high that his mind was constantly occupied with work. Instead of thinking about Ukai and everything he liked about him, Ittetsu was thinking about members of the team and how to help them, what they could improve, and how he could make things easier for everyone as they geared up for the tournament. Ukai seemed just as engrossed in coaching, and it was paying off: Karasuno was in far better shape than they were when the man had signed on. The team worked together better, the players were more confident, and their weaknesses were slowly disappearing as Ukai trained each member to be well-rounded and strong. Takeda was delighted to see his students grow and come into their own as players.

The first day of the inter-high, all that work paid off, and Takeda hadn't been so fired up in ages. His team was on a roll, winning first one match, then the next against a team that had previously crushed them. And right there next to Takeda the whole time, strategizing and worrying and cheering along with him, was Ukai. And though they were busy thinking about the action on the court, Takeda still caught the little things. The way Ukai's jaw set when Karasuno was in a tight spot, or the way he smirked when they caught the other team off guard. Ukai was so animated, and Takeda adored that about him.

"Nice work Sensei!" Ukai crowed as they made their way out to the bus after the matches. He thumped Takeda on the back, startling the teacher a little.

"Me? What for?" he laughed. "All I did was give a speech at the beginning."

"Aw, come off it, you were there for practice every day helping out, and you got the ball rolling on practice matches and stuff," Ukai argued. Takeda blushed lightly, and shrugged.

"True enough," he conceded. "Nice work to you too though, Ukai-kun. You've put in a lot of time for this team, and it shows!"

"Yeah yeah." Ukai stepped up into the bus, and sat in the driver's seat. Ittetsu sat beside him, and the boys started filling in after.

The second day, however, saw a grueling battle with Seijou, which ended in heartbreak for Karasuno. The team was quiet and somber on the way to dinner, and many of the boys were in tears during the meal. Takeda glanced at Ukai a couple times during dinner, and as he suspected, the coach looked awful disappointed too.

It was hard watching the team lose their shot at nationals, and to watch the hope and determination dissolve from their faces. Takeda watched with sad eyes as they dispersed upon returning to the school. He wanted to say something, to tell them they’d done their very best, or that they’d get another chance in the spring, but in the end he just stood there, smiling sadly at the few kids that looked his way.

“I’m heading out too,” Ukai said from behind him. “I need to get to bed early so I can get up and work on the farm. Can you take care of getting the bus back to the garage?”

“Yes, I can do that,” Ittetsu agreed. He sighed. “It really is difficult to see them like that. They worked so hard…”

“It’s bitter, losing in three sets like that, with multiple deuces. It’s one thing if you get crushed- you can just say oh well, the other team was better than us, and get on with your life. But when it’s that close, and you still lose, you’re gonna be up all night thinking ‘what if I coulda saved that ball? What if I had hit that serve in? What if I’m the one that cost us the game?’ It’s hard to get that close to victory and have it snatched away from you.” Ukai lit up a cigarette, and blew the smoke away from Takeda.

“Well, at least now they can rest after all the training they’ve been doing. And so can we,” Takeda sighed. “At least for a little while. I’m sure they’ll want to start gearing up for the Spring Tournament soon enough.”

“Hinata’s gonna be there early tomorrow, you just watch,” Ukai said flatly. “I’ll see you around, Sensei. G’night.” The blond started off toward home, and Takeda waved.

“Goodnight Ukai-kun. Don’t you go beating yourself up over this, okay? You’re not the one that cost us the game, either.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Takeda smiled, and boarded the bus to drive it back to the garage. Soon they would have a whole new tournament to prepare for, and he would have new practice matches to arrange, camps to coordinate, and things to learn. But for now, he deserved a rest too.

\---

Despite his best protests, Ukai ended up at a bar with Shimada and Takinoue a few nights later, supposedly an event orchestrated to ‘cheer him up’. Instead of going to bed so he wouldn’t feel like shit at 4am tomorrow, he was here, drinking, and preparing for a sleepy, hungover morning of misery later.

“C’mon Ukai, you’ve been sulking every time we’ve seen you since the match,” Takinoue pestered him, sliding him another shot. He took it begrudgingly.

“We lost, and the team is miserable, do you expect me to be frolicking through a meadow or some shit?” Keishin retorted.

“No. But we do expect you to have fun drinking with your friends, so chin up! It’s not your fault Karasuno lost. They’re way better off with you there than they would have been without you,” Shimada chimed in.

“Yeah, well I wouldn’t be there if it wasn’t for Sensei, so take him out drinking and let me go home,” Keishin snarked. Takinoue laughed, and he and Shimada glanced at each other.

“Speaking of Takeda-sensei,” Shimada said slyly.

“What?” Ukai grumbled. He wasn’t in the mood.

“Tadashi told me one of the young student teachers asked him on a date the other day,” Shimada continued.

“Okay?” Ukai hadn’t heard about that, but he probably would soon. Takeda wasn’t really one to keep quiet if he was excited about something.

“He turned her down, apparently he said he’s already interested in someone else.” Now that came as a bit of a surprise to Keishin. Takeda was 29 and still single, the logical thing to do would be to at least give the woman a chance. And who the hell would Takeda refuse her for, anyway? He never saw Sensei talking to women for more than a few minutes at a time, and it was only for work when it did happen.

“Yamaguchi saw this happen? And he gave a shit why? And you gave a shit, why? And you’re telling me, expecting me to give a shit… why?” Ukai really wasn’t in the goddamn mood for this high school gossip crap.

“Ukai, are you sure that when you bleach your hair, it doesn’t soak into your brain?” Takinoue joked.

“It’s so obvious,” Shimada agreed, nodding at him.

“What?! What the hell are you two idiots talking about, I’m too drunk for this right now,” Keishin barked. They laughed, and Shimada patted him on the shoulder.

“Have you really never considered that Takeda-san might be interested in you?” he asked. If Ukai had been drinking when he said it, he would have spat it all over the bar.

_“What?”_

“I mean, he did follow you to the neighborhood game just to watch you play. Which is really weird, considering you’re work friends, and nobody cares about 26 year old men playing volleyball,” Takinoue pointed out.

“That doesn’t mean he _likes_ me!” Keishin sputtered.

“You told us he dug up tapes of you playing in high school just so he could see you doing what you loved,” Shimada countered. “And you spend every day together during the week. Who the hell else could it be?”

“It could have been an excuse not to date the chick! He could have made it up!” Takeda really didn’t seem like the kind of guy to lie to a girl like that, though.

“Or, he could have feelings for you,” said Takinoue.

“No. Screw you guys. You brought me here to pounce on me about Sensei and try to convince me he’s gay for me, didn’t you? This was planned!” Ukai said irritably.

“Maybe a little,” Shimada admitted. “But what if he did like you? What would you do?”

“I dunno,” Keishin grumbled. “I’m too busy for that kind of shit. I can’t manage a relationship on top of everything else.”

“You already see him all the time, and meet after hours to work on club business. I think you could handle it.”

“Maybe I just don’t wanna date anybody right now, what about that?!” Keishin snapped.

“Ukai, no offense,” Takinoue said. “But if there’s anybody that seriously needs to get laid, it’s you.”

Ukai stared at him blankly for a moment.

“Okay I’m going home,” he said, standing. “If you nosy assholes wanna hang out later, give me a call when you’re ready to not badger me about this.” Takinoue opened his mouth to object to him leaving, but there was really no point. Ukai was in a mood and he wanted to go home, and at this point it was probably best to let him.

The blond left the bar, and stuffed his hands into his pockets as he walked back home. He could see his breath for the first time this season, unfortunately it would be winter soon. Ugh. Those guys were so full of it. Sensei… no. It was a stupid, crackpot theory made up by bored, well-meaning friends.

Keishin arrived home and climbed the stairs to the loft, and stopped when he saw a box on the step with an envelope taped to it. In sloppy handwriting, it read ‘Ukai-kun’. He picked up the box, which turned out to be rather heavy, and took it inside and down the hall to his room. He sat on the bed, and opened the note.

_Ukai-kun,_

_You still seemed down the last few times I saw you, so I came by with this to cheer you up. Nobody came to the door, so I’m leaving it here. Please enjoy!_

_Takeda Ittetsu_

Ukai felt his face flood with warmth, and he just knew he had to be beet red. Of all the shitty timing… He opened the box, and found a pot of homemade curry, presumably made by Takeda.

He touched his cheek, and imagined Sensei hard at work in the kitchen, preparing this to bring over in an attempt to cheer him up. He silently cursed Shimada and Takinoue for dragging him away from home and making him miss Takeda’s visit.

Keishin quietly went to the kitchen and found that there was still some rice in the rice cooker, so he served himself a small amount and dished the still-hot curry over top of it. He took a bite, and his face scrunched up. This was… terrible. There was no other way to describe it. The seasoning was way off, probably in the wrong proportions, and it tasted overdone. He grimaced, and took another bite. Takeda had gone to all the trouble to make this, he should at least eat it.

After several more highly unpleasant bites, Keishin put his plate away, and put the curry in the fridge. Maybe his parents would like it or something. He went back to his room and stripped down to boxers and a t-shirt, allowing his headband to fall as he took off his sweatshirt. His hair fell around his face, and he flopped onto the mattress.

Was there something to what Shimada had said? Did Takeda have… romantic feelings for him? He didn’t like to admit it, but it was true- Sensei’s actions were awfully strange for just a work friend. Keishin sighed, and stared at the ceiling. What would he do if it was true? How did _he_ feel? Ughhhhh. He was too drunk and too tired to think about this right now. What he needed was some goddamn sleep. He’d think about this in the morning.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Ukai is pretty overwhelmed right now. And he's probably gonna stress about what to say to Sensei about his curry. On one hand, he doesn't want to hurt his feelings, but on the other, he never wants to eat that again ever. Ever.


	6. Movie Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ukai returns Takeda's pot to him, and stays to hang out for the evening.

The next time Karasuno had practice, Keishin could hardly focus. Every time he got into the zone, Takeda would say something, or tap him on the arm, and he would be back to thinking about what his friends had said at the bar. Did Sensei smile at everyone that often? Did he stand so close to his teacher friends? Every little thing Takeda did went under the microscope, and yet Ukai felt no closer to having an answer one way or the other. For one thing, he barely ever saw Sensei interact with other adults, so he didn't have much to compare his behavior to, and for another, Keishin was no expert on romance. The relationships he'd been in had been short-lived, and honestly Takeda wasn't that similar to the people he'd dated before. He was pretty much flying blind here.

"Oh, by the way Ukai-kun, did you get the curry I left by your door the other day?" Takeda asked, once again jarring Keishin out of his thoughts.

"Uhh, yeah, I found it," he said. "Thanks for going to all that trouble, Sensei."

"Oh, it was no big deal," the teacher assured, waving his hand dismissively. "Did you like it? I've never made it before, so I wasn't sure how it would turn out." Ukai stiffened. Crap. He didn't know how to answer this. Hurting Takeda's feelings would be like pouring a bucket of water on a kitten, but if he said he'd loved the curry, he might have to eat it again. Plus, Takeda was a teacher. Constructive criticism was his thing, right?

"Er... I think the recipe could use some tweaking," he said lamely. Takeda's smile faded a little. "It- it was still good though! Curry is just hard to get just right, and-"

"It's okay Ukai-kun," Ittetsu said. "Thanks for trying to spare my feelings. But it was my first time making it, I figured it would have some issues. I'd rather know than keep making it wrong."

"I still appreciate it," Keishin muttered. "I mean, you went out of your way to cook for me... I'll bring the pot back later tonight, okay?"

"Sure, do you know where I live?" Takeda asked. Keishin could swear he saw a light blush on the teacher's cheeks, but he might have been imagining it.

"Nope. You'd think I'd have been over there by now but I have no idea."

"I'll text the address to you later," said Ittetsu. His smile was back in full force, to Ukai's relief.

"Hey! Take-chan, quit distracting coach!" Tanaka teased from the court. Takeda went bright red, and Ukai glared at Tanaka.

"Do you brats need a lap around the school?!" he barked. "Get back to practicing your serves!"

\---

Ukai showed up at Takeda’s apartment with the curry pot around 9:30, after his shift at the store was over. He knocked, after checking his texts to make sure he was at the right door. The teacher answered with a smile, and gestured for him to come inside.

“Hey, glad you could make it,” Ittetsu said as Ukai stepped in. The blond looked around, and predictably enough, Takeda’s apartment was neat and tidy. The only exception was his desk, which was covered in papers and stacks of books.

“I washed this,” Keishin said, handing him the pot. “Again, thanks for going out of your way for me. You didn’t have to do that just to cheer me up.”

“Well, did it work?” Takeda asked, taking the pot to the kitchen to put it away.

“Huh?”

“Did I successfully cheer you up?” the teacher asked, bringing over a beer for each of them. Ukai took the bottle gratefully. “Even though the curry was bad?”

“Heh, yeah, you kinda did,” Keishin admitted. “It’s pretty cool knowing you’ve got people looking out for you, I gotta say. Shimada and Takinoue had the same idea that night, except their method of cheering me up involved dragging me to a bar and gossiping at me.”

“Well, that explains why you didn’t answer the door,” Takeda laughed. “Do you want to sit down, and maybe watch something? I downloaded the men’s national volleyball championship.” Ukai moved to the couch.

“Nah, let’s just watch a movie or something, all we ever do is volleyball crap,” he suggested. For once he just wanted to hang out with his co-coach. “I like it, but it’s a little much sometimes. What kind of movies you got, Sensei?”

“Oh, um… let me look,” Ittetsu said, cheeks flushing lightly. Was he blushing because of Keishin, or was he just always like that? He couldn’t tell. “Ah, what kind of movies do you like to watch, Ukai-kun? Sci-fi, action, comedy?”

“Dude, I don’t care. Why don’t we just pick something at random?”

“Okay,” Takeda said. “How about this? I have 4 shelves, each with… about 20 movies on them. So pick a number between 1 and 80, and we’ll watch whichever one you pick.” Ukai hummed for a moment, thinking.

“27,” he said after a moment.

“Okay, let’s see… second shelf… oh. Well, okay then,” Takeda laughed nervously. He brought over the dvd case, and showed it to Keishin.

“Ju-On: The Grudge..? Never heard of it,” Ukai grunted. Takeda went over and slid the disc into his dvd player, and joined Keishin on the couch.

“Uh, well, it’s a horror movie,” he said. “I’ve only seen it once, and it was really scary! But it’s really good, and we’re together, so it’s not as bad as watching it alone, right?”

“Right.” Horror, huh? Keishin didn’t really watch horror movies, but it couldn’t be that bad. It might be funny to watch Sensei jump out of his skin.

“Hang on, I’ll get the rest of the beer so we won’t have to keep getting up,” Takeda said, running off to the kitchen. He came back with the rest of a 12 pack, and set it on the coffee table before pressing play on the film.

\---

Nearly two hours later, the two men were huddled up together on the couch, drunk and terrified. Takeda had his knees pulled up to his chest, and his shoulder pressed against Keishin’s when the movie finally ended. Beer bottles littered the table- they’d drunk the whole 12 pack before the final segment of the film.

“That was a terrible idea, why did we watch that?” Ittetsu breathed, finally speaking after an hour and 45 minutes of silence.

“Don’t look at me, I just picked a random number,” Keishin grumbled. He was tempted to pull his feet up off the floor too after seeing that ghost pop out from all those nooks and crannies.

“Oh god I think I’m gonna be sleeping with the lights on tonight,” Takeda lamented. Keishin stiffened as he realized he still had to walk home.

“Shit,” he cursed under his breath. “I’m piss-drunk and my nerves are all keyed up, and I still have to walk back.” Takeda grabbed his arm.

“Stay here,” he said quickly. “Um… just take the couch. It’s not safe to walk back drunk, Ukai-kun. Plus I don’t want to be alone after that…” Keishin blushed lightly. Sensei looked so adorable right now, wide-eyed and frazzled. He couldn’t say no to that face. And besides, he didn’t want to be alone right now either, he was sufficiently freaked out too.

“Alright, alright, fine, but all I have on me is these jeans, so could I borrow some pjs?”

“Sure!” Takeda stood up and hurried to his room. He came back in record time with a pair of lucky cat printed pajama pants, and Ukai chuckled. “They’re the biggest I have, but I don’t know if they’ll fit you very well.”

“They’ll do fine. Better than jeans,” Ukai said, taking the pants from him. “Where’s your bathroom at?”

“It’s that door, by my bedroom,” Takeda pointed out. Keishin yawned, and went to the bathroom, closing the door behind him. He took a leak while he was there, and changed into the pants. He pulled the headband from his hair, allowing it to fall loosely around his face, and today he was especially glad his hair was blond and not stringy and black.

He emerged a few minutes later in Takeda’s pajamas, which were awkwardly short on him and fit a little too tight. “Ta-da,” he said flatly, prompting the teacher to giggle at him.

“That’s a good look for you, Ukai-kun. Maybe I should let you borrow those for the next training camp,” Ittetsu teased.

“Laugh all you want, but I’m wearing good luck charms and you’re not. The monster’s gonna get you first,” Ukai shot back. Takeda’s eyes widened.

“Ukai-kuuuun,” he whined, the alcohol clearly affecting him. “Don’t say that, it’s scary enough having to go sleep in my room by myself.” Ukai came and sat down next to him again, and roughly tousled his hair.

“What, do you want me to come climb in bed with you and ward off the spirits with my cat pants?” he teased. Takeda blushed brightly and gaped at him.

“I- Wh- _Your_ cat pants? Excuse you,” he sputtered. Keishin’s curiosity was piqued now. Did Sensei have feelings for him after all?

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding,” Ukai said, not wanting to push it too much and have Takeda get upset. “But y’know, if you do get scared, I’m gonna be right here. Probably flipping out just as bad as you are.” The teacher smiled nervously, and nodded.

“Thanks, Ukai-kun,” he sighed. “I guess I’ll get going to bed. I have to be up early for school, after all.” He stood up, a little wobbly on his feet, Ukai noticed. Takeda must be pretty damn drunk.

“Kay. G’night, Sensei,” said Keishin. He grabbed the throw blanket from the back of the couch, and was about to lay down, when Takeda bent down and kissed him on the cheek. The teacher nearly lost his balance, and had to grab Keishin’s shoulder for support. Keishin’s eyebrows rose, as did the color in his cheeks. Sensei was drunk, he reminded himself, but that didn’t mean he went around kissing everyone on the cheek when he drank.

“Goodnight,” Takeda hummed, smiling at him before going to his bedroom and closing the door. Keishin laid down and pulled the blanket over himself, staring at the ceiling in a daze. Sensei kissed him. He _kissed_ him. On the cheek, but still. If that wasn’t confirmation that Takeda liked him, then what was? He groaned as he replayed the event in his head repeatedly, recalling the soft press of Sensei’s lips against his skin.

He wanted to feel it again.

Keishin covered his face with a pillow, and wished he’d brought his cigarettes with him. He needed a damn smoke right now, even if that meant standing outside on a dark, chilly balcony. The specters from the movie weren’t even at the forefront of his mind anymore, all he could think about was that smooch on the cheek. Those big, owlish brown eyes. How tiny Sensei had looked, all curled in on himself after the movie. And of course, his selfless generosity, his boundless perseverance, and his adorable optimism… Dammit.

Had he gone and fallen for Takeda Ittetsu?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of these days, I'm gonna watch Ju-On The Grudge, but the american version freaked me out badly enough.
> 
> ADORABLE art of this chapter: http://spooneaterarts.tumblr.com/post/134272609924/ok-so-this-ukatake-fic-is-cute-and-my-hand-slipped


	7. Restless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning after their movie night, Ukai and Takeda try to talk about feelings.

Keishin woke up around 5am, thanks to his sleep schedule being used to 4am shifts at the farm. He tried, unsuccessfully, to get back to sleep. Unfortunately though, he was wide awake, and Sensei probably wouldn't even be up for another hour.

He wandered to the kitchen and checked the cabinets and the fridge, just to see what Takeda had to eat. Surprisingly, his cabinets were mostly full of junk food and instant stuff. Huh. There were some eggs in the fridge though, and enough ingredients to make pancakes, so Keishin decided to cook up some breakfast.

He made two omelets with the few vegetables he'd found in Takeda's fridge, one for himself and one for his host. Simultaneously, he made a batch of pancakes and started stacking them on a plate. Cooking was second nature to Ukai. His mom had taught him everything she knew about food from the time he was in middle school. He figured if Takeda was eating mostly instant meals, he'd appreciate a home cooked breakfast before work. Plus, Keishin had nothing better to do.

"Ukai-kun?" Takeda questioned from his doorway. He didn't have his glasses on yet, and he was rubbing one eye. Keishin turned, and held a hand up in greeting.

"Morning Sensei," he said. "You're up early, aren't you? Doesn't school start at 8?"

"Yeah, but teachers have to be there earlier," Takeda reminded him. "Though I usually don't get up until around 6. I woke up and smelled eggs, so I came to see what you were making." Ukai gestured to the stove, where there were still pancakes frying.

"I hope you don't mind I used your ingredients," he said. "I thought I'd make breakfast since you had me over for the night." Takeda beamed, and poured himself a glass of water.

"You didn't have to do that Ukai-kun, thank you," the teacher said gratefully. "I didn't even know you liked to cook."

"Yeah, well, it's a practical skill to have," Keishin shrugged. "Though you seem to get by on mostly instant noodles."

"I- I don't have time to cook every day," Takeda defended, blushing. "I lose track of time grading, and it's easier to just microwave something." Keishin turned off the stove, and brought the omelets and pancakes over to the kitchen table.

"You gotta take care of yourself, Sensei," he scolded. "You’re not gonna be young forever. You’re what, 28?”

“29. I just never learned much about cooking, and I’m not very good at it.” He took a bite of his omelet, and his face lit up. “But you sure seem to be, Ukai-kun. This is excellent.” Keishin felt his own cheeks warm up.

“Ahh, it’s nothing, I could teach you to make this,” he said. “Not today, but like. Sometime.” He started eating his own breakfast, occasionally watching Sensei’s face for his reactions to the food.

“Well, either way, thank you for cooking,” Takeda said, reaching for his glass of water.

“It’s no big,” Keishin insisted. “You feeling hung over from last night?”

“Ah, a little,” Takeda chuckled. “My memories are even a little fuzzy.”

“Well, you did have 8 of the 12 beers,” Ukai snorted. “The more nervous you got, the quicker you drank. It was actually kind of impressive how fast you chugged some of them.”

“Whoops, I didn’t realize I’d drank that many,” Ittetsu laughed. “I-“ His face bloomed red as realization dawned on him.

“You okay there, Sensei?”

“I kissed you on the cheek last night didn’t I? Oh goodness… I’m _so_ sorry Ukai-kun, I don’t know what came over me-“

“It’s fine,” Keishin cut him off. More color rose in his cheeks, and he glanced away. He had kind of been hoping Takeda would forget about that… now it was awkward.

“I just don’t want you to think I’m trying to- I mean-“ Ittetsu stammered.

“Sensei. It’s fine,” Keishin repeated. “You were drunk, stuff happens when you drink. It’s not a big deal.” As he said that, though, his mind was running through all the possibilities of what that kiss had meant.

“Okay,” the teacher sighed. He looked down at his plate. “I just don’t want to make you uncomfortable, or make you think anything strange about me.”

“Strange?” Ukai had a feeling he knew what Takeda meant by that, but he was curious as to what Sensei would say.

“Um, well not strange, I guess, but. Homo…sexual?” The poor teacher looked like he wanted to melt into his chair, and dammit, now Keishin felt kind of bad for making him say it. He sighed, and rubbed his eyes.

“Sensei, _I_ am homosexual,” he said. Takeda looked up and him, and Keishin wanted to laugh. He looked so stunned, like he’d never considered that as a possibility. “Is that a problem?”

“N- _no!_ ” Ittetsu sputtered. “Of course not, I wouldn’t judge you on something like that, you’re my friend!” Keishin reached across the table and whacked him on the hand with the back end of his chopsticks.

“Why would you think I’d care about that sorta thing, then?” he asked.

“Well, I don’t know. Some people just have prejudices. And I didn’t want to lose you as a friend over a misunderstanding like that.”

“Was it a misunderstanding..?” Keishin asked, reddening again.

“Was what?”

“That smooch on the cheek.” He looked away, focusing on a crack in the drywall instead of Takeda. The other was silent for a long moment, and the tension was so thick it was unbearable.

“I- I need to go take a shower,” Ittetsu said, standing abruptly. He hurried to the bathroom and closed the door, leaving Keishin to an awkward, confused silence.

Well, now what?

He groaned, and finished his food before cleaning up the dishes and putting Takeda’s leftovers in the fridge. Fucking hell. Had he crossed a line, asking if there was meaning behind that kiss? Maybe was wrong, and Sensei _didn’t_ have feelings for him. In which case, Keishin had just admitted he was gay, and insinuated that there was something between them. Fuck… had he scared the man off?

He went over to the teacher’s desk and found a scrap piece of paper and a pen. He scrawled a note to Takeda, and left it on the kitchen table where he would see it.

_Sensei-_

_Thanks for the hospitality._

_U.K._

Keishin changed back into his jeans and folded Takeda’s pajama pants, and laid the throw blanket back on the back of the couch. He pulled his headband over his head and into place, patted his pockets to make sure he had everything, and headed out. It would be less awkward this way, and later they’d see each other at practice and just pretend that conversation didn’t happen. Or so he hoped.

\---

Ittetsu went from the bathroom to his room without even looking around the apartment, so he didn’t even realize Ukai had left yet. He picked out his clothes for the day and got dressed, sliding his glasses into place last.

“Ukai-kun, you can take a shower if- Ukai-kun?” he questioned as he exited his room. He opened the pantry door, and checked the balcony before seeing the note Keishin had left him.

Thanks for the hospitality, huh? He set the note back down, and bit his lip. Was Ukai mad at him? Was it because he called homosexuals strange? Dammit, that must be it… but he didn’t even think that! He’d only been worried that the coach would think _he_ was gay and strange! Takeda sat down and rested his forehead in his hands.

“I blew it,” he muttered. “I actually had more of a chance than I thought I did, and I blew it…” How could he go to volleyball practice now? He felt queasy all of a sudden, thinking about Ukai giving him the cold shoulder, maybe even telling him he wasn’t necessary at practices anymore. He had to apologize.

\---

Takeda couldn’t get that morning’s conversation out of his head all day, and even his students started to pick up on his troubled mood. Volleyball practice loomed ever closer… maybe If he missed just this one day, it would be alright. It wasn’t even the active season, after all. Yeah, he could afford to skip a single day. He caught Azumane in the hall after the final bell.

“Azumane,” he called. The tall boy startled, and turned around. “Would you mind telling Ukai-kun that I won’t be at practice today? I’m not feeling well, so I’m just going to go home,” he said. Asahi nodded.

“Sure thing, sensei,” he said. “I hope you feel better soon.”

“Thank you. Good luck at practice,” Ittetsu said cheerfully. Now that that was taken care of, it was time to make his escape before anyone else from the team could stop him and question him. He left from the back entrance of the school instead of the side, and took a different route home than he normally would. Luckily, he got home without incident, but he didn’t really feel better once he was there. He was a coward… hiding from Ukai-kun like that. To distract himself, Takeda immersed himself in grading papers, working until late in the evening, once again forgetting to properly eat.

\---

 Keishin arrived at the school not knowing what to expect from Sensei. He hoped the teacher wouldn't be uncomfortable around him after this morning, but he figured that was wishful thinking. As he approached the gym, Asahi came up to him.

"Ukai-san," the ace said politely. "Sensei told me to let you knew he wasn't feeling well today, and he won't be at practice." Keishin's chest tightened. Fuck... Was Takeda that unwilling to be around him?

"Okay, thanks Azumane," he said, furrowing his brow. Asahi bowed a couple inches and went past him into the gym, and Keishin lit up a cigarette. Dammit. He'd really fucked this up, hadn't he? Did Sensei even want to be friends anymore? 

He scowled, and leaned against the building. If Takeda really was that put off by his orientation, maybe he didn't need a friend like that anyway. But it still stung. Just when he'd started thinking they could have something together, it all got yanked out from under him and left him flat on his ass. 

After putting out his cigarette, Keishin went into the gym and led practice, but he could tell his temper was coming out more than usual. The team seemed frustrated by his irritability, and he couldn't focus for too long before his mind drifted back to what he should have done differently. He was grateful to get out of there when practice time was up- at least the store would keep him busy with simple, distracting tasks. 

Keishin went to bed that night feeling hurt and pissed off, not knowing where he stood with Takeda or if they'd ever hang out like last night again. He felt a little silly, seeing as he'd only realized his feelings for Sensei yesterday, but his heart ached. But eventually, exhaustion won out over his restless mind, and he drifted off into dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Insecurity is rough, yo.


	8. Rendezvous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takeda sets out to make things right.

Shimada Makoto was having a dull, uneventful night at his family store. He'd already stocked the shelves, tidied up the shop, and read the day's paper cover to cover, and there was still an hour before closing time. When the door opened, he was pretty glad to have something to do. 

"Welcome to- Takeda-san, hello," he said, greeting the small teacher. "What can I do for you?" He found it odd that Takeda would come here instead of Ukai's place, which was much closer to the school. 

"I'd like to buy some flowers," Takeda said resolutely. "You have some small arrangements, right?" Oh? Now this was interesting. 

"We do," Shimada said, walking with him to the small display of bouquets. "Are these for Ukai, Takeda-san?" The teacher blushed, and hesitated before answering.

"H-how did you know?" he asked, picking a small bouquet of warm colored flowers. "They're for an apology. The other day there was a misunderstanding, and I think I hurt his feelings."

"Well, that explains why he was in such a foul mood yesterday," Shimada chuckled. "Ukai isn't the type to hold a grudge, though. Don't worry." Takeda bowed. 

"Thank you Shimada-kun," he said, following him over to the checkout counter.

"Don't mention it," Shimada replied. "Oh, and Takeda-san? If you're going to confess your feelings to him, I don't suggest doing it at the Foothill Store. His parents can be a little overinvolved." Takeda's face lit up scarlet.

"I'm- I'm-! Yes. Okay," Ittetsu faltered. "Good night Shimada-kun." He left with his bouquet, and Shimada sat back down at the counter. Well, at least tonight was interesting now.

\---

Ukai was in a similar situation, slowly dying of boredom in his family's shop, when his phone beeped. He glanced at the screen, and bristled at Sensei's name. The two of them hadn't been in contact since the previous morning. But he figured he might as well see what the man had to say, so he flipped his phone open to check his texts.

_Ukai-kun,_

_I humbly request you to please meet me in the park after you're done closing for the night._

_Takeda Ittetsu_

Jeez. Who signed texts with their full name, anyway? Keishin looked at the clock. 20 minutes until closing time, and the store was completely dead. 

_Are you there right now? Store's dead, I'll just close up and come by now._

He'd really rather not wait out 20 minutes of what-ifs. Takeda had been completely avoiding him until this point, so he was kind of confused. Was he about to go to the park and get told off, or did Takeda want to politely end their friendship, or did he want to apologize? Did he want Keishin to apologize? Gah, he definitely couldn't wait 20 minutes.

_Yes, I'm there now. I'm by the entrance._

That settled that then. Ukai went through the motions of closing the store, doing a less thorough job than usual, and pulled his hood up before leaving. He walked at a brisk pace, cigarette between his lips, toward the park. Keishin really, really wasn't ready to face Sensei, he realized. He hated conflict. But this whole avoidance thing sucked, and he missed Takeda, even if it had only been 2 days. 

He blew a cloud of smoke from his lips as he approached the park, and when it cleared, he could see the teacher's small frame on a bench. He had something tucked under his jacket, and for a split, paranoid second, Ukai wondered if Takeda brought him here to stab him. Fuck. No, that was fucking stupid. For one he could take Sensei in a fight with his eyes closed, and they both knew it. 

"Hi, Ukai-kun," Takeda said, voice full of determination as he stood. Oh man, Keishin recognized that tone. That was the tone that had gotten him to agree to coach a horde of sweaty high school boys, and he knew when that tone came out, Sensei meant business.

"Hey Sensei," he greeted, moving closer. Ittetsu's brow furrowed, and from his jacket, he thrust forward... a bouquet? Keishin's eyebrow rose, and he took the flowers with a thoroughly confused expression. 

"I came here to apologize," Takeda explained. He bowed, and straightened up still wearing that fierce expression. Okay, this was weird and Keishin was kind of at a loss. Sensei's body language didn't match the rest of this at all. 

"What- Sensei, you look like you're about to lead me into battle, what's going on?" Ittetsu's cheeks reddened, but he didn't waver. 

"I'm sorry for running off yesterday morning, it wasn't because of anything you did. I was too cowardly to come to practice yesterday, and of course today was our day off... When I got out of the shower and you had already left, I was afraid to face you. I don't think homosexuals are strange and I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings, Ukai-kun." Ukai blinked. What? That's why Sensei had been avoiding him? Not because of something he did?

"But I left a note," he said, dumbfounded. "I thought I'd made you uncomfortable, asking about that kiss on the cheek, so I figured I'd give you your space. It's your apartment."

"No, you didn't make me uncomfortable!" Takeda insisted, blushing deeper. "I didn't expect you to ask that and I got flustered... I really, really like you Ukai-kun. I've liked you since the training camp, and I never thought you'd be able to return my feelings... so when you told me you were gay, I was caught off guard, and I got nervous. Oh gosh, and I've been avoiding you, you probably thought I didn't want to be around you..." 

"Sensei..." Ukai dropped his cigarette end to the ground, and crushed it with his heel. He could feel the heat flaring in his face as Takeda's words sunk in. He held the flowers closer to his chest. "Forget about avoiding me, it was just a dumb misunderstanding. You really... have feelings for me?" Keishin's heart was pounding now. These past few days, he'd been sulking about Takeda possibly being disgusted by him, and he'd come here prepared for the worst. 

"I do," Ittetsu said, looking him in the eye. "And if you don't feel the same, I can accept that. I won't insist, like I usually do. But I wanted to tell you..." Ukai stepped forward and placed his hand on Takeda's shoulder. The teacher was so slight, so much smaller than him. Keishin wanted to just wrap him up in his arms, keep him safe and warm and happy... he wanted more nights like the one before last, just the two of them huddled on the couch sharing a movie and some drinks. Except at the end of the night, maybe he'd slip into bed with Sensei, slide his glasses from his face, and kiss his forehead as they drifted off to sleep.

"I... feel the same," Keishin confessed, voice breaking just a little. Ittetsu's big, brown eyes widened, and a huge smile spread across his face. "I didn't realize it until the other night... but... yeah." He could just tell he was red to the tips of his ears. He couldn't even keep eye contact for too long without looking away shyly. God, he was bad at this. Romance had never been his forte but surely he could do better than this, couldn't he? He looked down at the flowers Sensei had brought for him. What the hell had he done to earn the affection of this pure-hearted, firecracker of a man? Keishin couldn't understand it. He was a perpetually grouchy, fairly unremarkable guy. He closed his eyes, just taking in the scent of the bouquet in his hands. 

And then Sensei was kissing him. 

He was so startled he almost dropped the flowers, and he emitted an undignified noise he'd deny making later. The teacher's hand came to rest on his cheek, and by the time Keishin had the sense to kiss back, Takeda was pulling back with a soft smile. 

"I- bah," was all Ukai managed to say. Ittetsu laughed, his hand still on Keishin's cheek. 

"Was that too forward?" he asked. "I don't want to push you, Ukai-kun." Keishin shook his head. 

"No... it's fine," he said. "Sorry. I'm just not used to this. I'm not... much of a romantic." His blush deepened, and he glanced away again. 

"Are you sure? You know I'm bullheaded when I want something, I don't want to browbeat you into this," Ittetsu said nervously. He suddenly looked self-conscious, and Ukai frowned. That would not do. Takeda was nothing if not dedicated, but he was dedicated to people first, not his own desires. He hadn't relentlessly pursued Keishin as a coach because he thought it would be fun. He had done it because his students were in need, and he cared about them. 

"Sensei," Keishin said firmly. "You're not browbeating me, and I don't expect you to. You're not a selfish man, you're devoted. And if... if you're devoted to me," god, he could feel his face warm up just from saying it, "then I know you're gonna do whatever ridiculous shit you can think of to make me happy... so don't worry about that, okay?"

"Ukai-kun..." this time it was Takeda who was at a loss for words. He nodded, and let his hand fall from the taller man's cheek. Keishin bit his lip, and looked down at him. 

"Was that too sappy?" he asked awkwardly. Ittetsu shook his head, smiling up at him. 

"No. It was... sweet. Thank you Ukai-kun." Keishin smiled, and held out his hand. 

"It's nothing," he said. "We should probably get going, though. It's cold out here... I'll walk you home?" Takeda took his hand happily, giving it a squeeze. 

They walked through the empty town mostly in silence, but it felt just right, hand in hand like this was their everyday. Keishin's heart rate didn't slow the whole time he was with Sensei, but he managed to stay composed as they made their way to the teacher's building. When they arrived, Takeda yawned, and turned to Keishin with another million-watt smile. Keishin really couldn't get enough of that sight.

"Goodnight Ukai-kun," Ittetsu said, separating their hands so he could fish out his key card. Ukai stepped closer. He could do this... Takeda had even kissed him earlier, he could manage a goodnight smooch. 

"Night, Sensei. Get some good sleep, alright?" Keishin swallowed, and leaned down, pressing his lips to Takeda's softer ones in a chaste kiss. Just that simple contact made his whole body bloom with warmth, and his heart beat even faster. It had all happened so fast, it seemed. Only days ago, he didn't even know he felt this way about the man, and now suddenly the misunderstanding was history, and they were sharing kisses, and... He was elated. 

He flashed one more grin at the teacher, and turned to walk toward home.

Once there, Keishin filled a vase with water, and removed the paper from around the bouquet- wait. The sticker on the paper was unmistakable.

Shimada Makoto was getting a serve to the back of the head next neighborhood association game. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wrote this whole chapter listening to The Only Exception by Paramore :v 
> 
> Btw, all of these chapters are unbeta'd, and written around 4-6 in the morning, so if I make any mistakes or typos, let me know and I'll fix them.


	9. Connection

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keishin and Ittetsu have their first real date.

Ittetsu was on cloud nine for the next several days after admitting his feelings to Ukai. He couldn't stop thinking about the way Keishin's large, calloused hand had felt around his own, and smoky, earthy scent he'd breathed in as they kissed. Even just seeing Ukai at practice was a little exciting.

And now, Takeda was cleaning his apartment, because Ukai was coming over again, planning to make them both dinner. He absolutely couldn't wait to try the coach's cooking again, and there was something so romantic about having someone cook for him... He made sure to clean the kitchen extra thoroughly, so Keishin would have a nice space to work in.

Speak of the devil, there was a knock on Ittetsu's front door. He set down the rag and cleaning spray, and hurried over to answer the door.

"You're early, Ukai-kun," Takeda said, opening the door all the way for him. Keishin had an armful of groceries with him. He walked in and set them on the kitchen table.

"Sorry Sensei, I guess I walked here quicker than I thought. Seriously though, I'm the last person you need to clean up for. Your place was already pretty tidy, anyway." He started pulling ingredients out of the grocery bag, and setting them on the counter.

"I might have gotten a little carried away," Ittetsu laughed. "But I wanted everything to look nice for our date." Keishin blushed, and waved his hand dismissively.

"The house isn't what I'm gonna notice," he said. It was Takeda's turn to blush, and he took off his rubber gloves.

"W-well, it is a date after all," he chuckled nervously. He walked over to where Keishin was rinsing vegetables, and kissed him on the cheek. "I can't wait to see what you make for dinner. Thanks again for offering to cook, Ukai-kun." A small smile appeared on Keishin’s face as he moved to start cutting the vegetables up.

“Not a problem,” the blond replied. “I’m not making anything fancy, it’s just chanpuru. Oh- did you start the rice before I came?”

“Yep!” Takeda said, pointing at the rice cooker. “About 20 minutes ago. It should be ready before you’re done.” Ukai rummaged around in Sensei’s cupboards until he found a large pan, and set it on the stove. He poured some oil into the pan and turned on the heat. Takeda watched intently from the table, admiring the ease with which Keishin worked. He always had that same look of concentration on his face, no matter what he was focusing on. His brow always furrowed just so, and he always rolled his sleeves up. And occasionally, if he was really into what he was doing, he’d bite at his bottom lip, which Ittetsu thought was just the cutest thing.

“Do you have tongs somewhere? I can’t find ‘em,” Ukai said after a few more moments of searching through cabinets.

“Oh- they’re in the dishwasher, I think. The dishes are clean, don’t worry.” Ukai grunted in acknowledgement and fetched the tongs, He started dropping tofu cubes into the pan, and the familiar sizzle of stir frying reached their ears. Soon, Keishin was adding in pork, then all the various vegetables he’d cut up. The whole apartment was starting to smell delicious, and Ittetsu couldn’t wait to try the food.

“Can you help me dish this up Sensei?” Keishin asked once his stir-fry was done. “Get plates, serve up the rice, all that stuff?”

“Sure thing,” Takeda agreed. He walked over and took out two plates and two sets of chopsticks. He scooped some rice onto each plate, and left room for the chanpuru. “It smells amazing, Ukai-kun. What do you want to drink with dinner?”

“Just wait till you try it,” Keishin said, grinning. “I’ll just have a beer, if that’s all right by you.”

“Of course,” Ittetsu laughed. “Have whatever you like. I bought another 12 pack for us, though I don’t know if we should drink the whole thing again.” He grabbed a bottle of beer from the fridge, and poured himself some green tea. Keishin served them each a portion of stir-fry, and brought the plates over with a smile.

“Itadakimasu,” they said simultaneously. Ittetsu took a bite, and hummed in approval.

“Ukai-kun, this is fantastic,” he said cheerfully. “I’m spoiled, having you cook for me again so soon.” Keishin snorted.

“It really isn’t a big deal, Sensei. Really. You need to eat better anyway, I’d rather make sure you get an actual meal than have you eating shitty microwave noodles.” Takeda laughed, and continued eating happily. As much as Ukai liked to act tough and callous, he really was a worrywart.

“You don’t need to worry about me,” he hummed. “I’m 29, I’ve been getting by just fine for a while now.”

“Well I’m gonna worry if you keep eating like shit.” Ittetsu laughed again, and Keishin scowled. “We’ll see who’s laughing when you get a vitamin deficiency.” This, of course, only made the teacher laugh harder.

“It certainly won’t be you,” he giggled. “You’ll be too busy shouting ‘I told you so, Sensei!’ to be laughing.” Keishin scowled harder, and shoved another bite into his mouth.

\---

After dinner, they cleaned up together despite Ittetsu’s insistence that he do it himself. Ukai had cooked, it was only fair that he cleaned the few dishes that needed cleaning. After the dishes were done, Ukai shrugged his sweatshirt off, to Takeda’s delight. The man had such nice arms, and his shirt was just tight enough to show off the physique underneath.

“So, what movie are we watching tonight, Sensei?” Ukai asked. Takeda smirked, and held up the dvd he’d rented. Ju-On: The Grudge 2.

“No!” Ukai barked, pointing at it. “We’re not watching that shit, didn’t you learn your lesson last time?” Takeda doubled over laughing, and set the movie on the table.

“I don’t really want to watch it,” he said. “I just rented it to see what you’d do.” Keishin’s jaw dropped, and he picked up the dvd box, whacking Takeda on the head with it lightly.

“You little shit,” he accused.

“Hey, I’m older than you! You can’t call me little.” Keishin stood up straight, and looked down his nose at Ittetsu.

“You barely come up to my chin. And I could probably toss you across this apartment,” he said flatly. Takeda sighed, though he was still smiling.

“You’ve got me there,” he admitted. “But I’m still older than you. Now c’mon, let’s pick out a movie to watch.” He took Keishin’s hand, and led him over to the bookcase where he kept his dvds.

They settled on Spirited Away, at Takeda’s suggestion. Ukai was a little skeptical about watching an animated flick, but when Takeda learned he’d never seen a Miyazaki movie, he insisted. They sat down on the couch just like they had the previous week, except this time Ittetsu brought a blanket, and they sat much closer together from the start.

About 20 minutes into the movie, Keishin wordlessly slipped his arm around Sensei’s shoulders, tugging him just a little bit closer. Ittetsu couldn’t help but smile. He leaned into the larger man’s side, and oh, what’s this? Ukai smelled different today.

“Are you wearing cologne, Ukai-kun?” he asked. Keishin flushed slightly.

“It’s body spray,” he mumbled. “Is it too much?”

“Mm-mm, I don’t think so,” Ittetsu reassured him. “Though you don’t have to be self-conscious about your scent. The way you normally smell is just fine.” Keishin’s cheeks flushed darker, and he stared straight ahead at the screen.

After a while, Takeda started to notice that Keishin was fidgeting. He was bouncing his leg now and then, and picking at a loose thread on his jeans. After a few minutes of this, Ittetsu glanced at him.

“Ukai-kun, are you okay?”

“Huh? Yeah, I’m good. Why?” the coach responded.

“You seem jittery… You don’t have to be nervous around me, it’s just me.” Ittetsu flashed him an encouraging smile, but Keishin didn’t seem relieved.

“It’s… not that,” he grumbled. “I haven’t had a smoke in like 6 hours, is all.” Takeda paused the movie, and Keishin looked at him.

“Ukai-kun. You aren’t intentionally abstaining because of our date, are you?”

“So what?” was his only reply. “They’re shitty for me anyway, what do you care?” Takeda pulled him down and kissed him earnestly, earning a small noise of surprise again.

“I’m not saying I want you to go smoke for the purpose of smoking. I just want you to do what’s natural! I’d rather you smoke outside, because my landlord will yell at me if you do it here, but there’s a balcony right there.” Keishin looked away.

“But nobody wants to kiss a smoker. Say it’s like licking an ashtray. I figured I’d be polite…” Takeda pointed forcefully at the balcony.

“I kissed you right after you had a cigarette the other day, Ukai-kun. Twice. They were very nice kisses, so-“ he blushed, looking down. “If you feel like you need a smoke, please do it. I want you to feel comfortable being yourself around me.” Keishin stood up, looking immensely relieved.

“I’ll be right back,” he said, heading out to the balcony. Takeda watched with a smile as he lit up and leaned over the railing, flicking his ashes carelessly over the edge. Ukai was so silly. Ittetsu had fallen for him knowing he was a smoker, so why would he feel the need to hide it?

When Keishin came back inside, Ittetsu walked right up to him, stood on tiptoe, and kissed him firmly on the mouth. Keishin’s eyes widened, and it took him a moment to react, but soon he was wrapping his strong arms around Ittetsu and kissing back. He tasted smoky, for sure, and it was a little overpowering since he’d just had a cigarette. But this was Ukai, and Ittetsu was happy to be able to kiss him either way.

When they parted, Keishin smiled, and flicked Ittetsu on the ear. “Thanks,” he said softly.

“Y-you’re welcome,” Takeda said. “Should we get back to the movie?”

“Yeah, let’s,” Ukai agreed. They sat back down and pulled the blanket up around them. Keishin’s arm slid into place around Takeda’s shoulders again, and the small teacher settled against his side happily.

\---

They were mostly quiet for the rest of the movie. Takeda had gone in hoping they’d spend a good part of the evening making out, but he couldn’t just make Keishin miss his first Miyazaki film. To Takeda’s delight, the blond seemed to really be enjoying it, too.

When the credits rolled, Ukai stretched, and smiled at him. “That was surprisingly good,” he conceded. He glanced at the clock. “I guess I should get going here soon, huh?”

“Yes, probably,” Ittetsu agreed. He was sorely tempted to ask Keishin to spend the night, but it was awfully early in their… relationship? Were they an item? Much too early. And he really didn’t have the nerve to ask anyhow. “Thank you for tonight, Ukai-kun.” Keishin nodded, cheeks dusting pink again.

“Hey, thanks for hosting, Sensei. We’ll have to watch more of this guy’s movies sometime.” He rested his hand on Ittetsu’s cheek.

“Oh, it’s never a problem. It’s not like I have roommates or anything, it’s just easier to do this here.” He moved in closer to the coach, who reddened further. Keishin really did blush at the drop of a hat, he noted. “You’re really cute, Ukai-kun…” Keishin scowled.

“ _Me?”_ he protested. “ _I’m_ the cute one? Bullshit, I’m not cute.” Takeda rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

“You are. Especially when you get flustered like that,” he giggled. Keishin huffed.

“You’re the damn cute one,” he grumbled. Ittetsu leaned up and pressed their foreheads together. They both had fairly red cheeks at this point. They might as well be in high school for as smooth as they were. Keishin tilted his head, still cupping Sensei’s cheek, and fit his chapped lips to Ittetsu’s soft, smooth ones. For as rough and unrefined as Keishin appeared sometimes, he took great care kissing Takeda. He was almost timid, not wanting to overstep his bounds, but not too passive. He tentatively ran his tongue along Takeda’s lower lip, and was met by the teacher’s own hesitant tongue. They danced around each other, neither wanting to invade the other’s mouth too aggressively, but it was nice.

Ittetsu melted against Keishin’s chest, marveling at how warm and broad he was. He wondered just how nice it would be to fall asleep on his chest, listening to his heartbeat as he drifted off.

Keishin pulled away first, and gave Ittetsu a tight, affectionate hug before standing up. “So… see you at practice tomorrow?” he asked. Ittetsu smiled up at him.

“Yep! I’ll be there,” he promised. “Don’t forget your cooking oil and your sweatshirt.” Ukai nodded, and walked over to grab the oil and pull his sweatshirt on. He walked behind the couch, and gave Ittetsu one more smooch on the cheek.

“G’night, Sensei. Thanks for the date.”

“Goodnight Ukai-kun, walk home safe, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah. See ya tomorrow.” Keishin gave him a cursory wave, and left.

Takeda flopped onto his back, and smiled up at the ceiling. Wow. His first date with Ukai-kun, and it had gone marvelously. He hugged the blanket to his chest. He was so happy, and Ukai was so wonderful. He couldn't wait to see him again even if it was just for volleyball practice. He sighed, closing his eyes. Ittetsu was undeniably in love.


	10. Wanted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keishin has some of his worries dispelled, and the two of them spend more quality time together. 
> 
> All chapters from here on out may or may not have NSFW content

It wasn't long before winter break arrived, and the volleyball team had their last practice of the calender year. Keishin ended up letting the team go early, sending them off with a reminder to stay healthy and to come back ready to train. He dismissed them from the gym, and once everyone was gone, went over to Takeda.

"So, must be nice to get a break from work for two whole weeks," he teased. "If you get bored and want company, my schedule is the same as ever."

"Ah, well I do have papers to grade over the break," Takeda sighed. "So it's not quite a vacation. Though you can feel free to come over, it won't take me all break to do it." Keishin smiled. He leaned in, and kissed the teacher softly.

The door to the gym creaked open, and the two men separated in the blink of an eye. But Sugawara had already seen enough. He stared blankly, not sure what to say, as his coach and advisor reddened.

"I... left my knee pads here," Sugawara said awkwardly. He hurried over to the stage, where they were sitting out of the way, and stuffed them into his bag.

"Sugawara, hang on," Ukai managed. Fuck, he did not need the team chattering about this. "Please don't tell anyone what you saw- it's not-"

"I won't," the third year promised quickly. "But... I already knew... There are a couple of us that know, but we're keeping it between us, so-"

"What? How, who knows? How'd they find out- did Yamaguchi tell you?" Keishin sputtered. Sensei was covering his face at this point.

"Um... Tanaka saw you in the park," Sugawara confessed. "Please don't be angry at him, he was surprised so he told me and Daichi when he got to practice. And... Kageyama overheard. But Daichi made us all promise to keep quiet about it, so don't worry." Ukai sighed heavily.

"Okay," he said. "Thanks for not spreading this around... Just- have a good break, and forget about it, okay?" Sugawara smiled, albeit nervously.

"If you insist. But we're happy for you."

"Go home!" Keishin squawked, pointing at the door. Sugawara quickly showed himself out, and Keishin slumped against the wall with a groan.

"I'm sorry Ukai-kun, it was my idea to go to the park," Ittetsu gushed.

"Stop," Keishin sighed. "Don't be sorry about that, I don't regret it. It's just, people are talking about us already, and we aren't even officially seeing each other. And I don't wanna put your reputation in jeopardy. You're a damn teacher in a small town, it could be shitty for you if people start finding out..." He slid down the wall until he was sitting on the floor.

"I know it's not ideal," Takeda agreed, kneeling down next to Ukai. "But if people find out, I'm not going to be ashamed. And we don't know that it would cause problems for me at all. It's the 2010s after all, times are changing for the better."

"I guess," the blond mumbled.

"Do you want to officially be seeing each other?" Ittetsu asked. Keishin blinked.

"Well- i- Yeah. Course I do."

"Then let's! We shouldn't let paranoia stop us. It'll be okay." Takeda smiled reassuringly at him, and stood up. "C'mon, I'll walk you to Sakanoshita." Ukai stood and nodded, pulling Sensei in for a brief hug. Warmth spread through his body as they left the gym together. Takeda wasn't ashamed of him, or afraid of what other people might say. He just wanted to be with Keishin. It was honestly a huge relief; Ukai's only two previous boyfriends were both hyper-aware of what other people thought, and it was taxing. Keishin had been a dirty little secret to both of them, something to keep covered up and hidden from everybody. But Sensei was less concerned than he was, and it felt really good to hear him say he wouldn't be ashamed.

"Thanks, Sensei," he murmured into his shoulder before pulling away. As they left for his family's store, his heart felt lighter.

\---

The next couple days were pretty busy for Ukai. He'd taken on extra hours at the store to make up for how much time he spent with the volleyball team, even though his parents insisted it wasn't necessary. It was a drag sitting behind the counter all day, but he passed the time reading magazines and thinking about Takeda. Sensei was his boyfriend now... it was still hard to believe. Keishin didn't even really get what the teacher saw in him, but he wasn't about to complain about it. Sensei was just so thoughtful and put together, and he had his own place and a career. Not to mention he was absolutely adorable. Sure, Keishin was a hard worker, but plenty of people worked hard. And yeah, he could recognize that he was a pretty good looking guy, but again, there were other attractive people. Takeda had even turned down a coworker in favor of him. Ukai felt really damn lucky, and really glad that he'd realized his own feelings for the man before he confessed.

After three straight days of long shifts, Keishin got a day off, and went over to Ittetsu's place with hot coffee for the both of them. It was good to see his boyfriend, but Takeda was in work mode, so Keishin ended up just sitting on the couch watching tv while the teacher graded papers. Even still, the proximity was nice.

"Sensei, how long are you gonna sit there grading?" he groaned after a while. "Don't you have all break to do it?"

"I always get all my grading done at the start of break," Takeda admitted. "If I don't, I tend to forget, and do a hasty job at the last minute."

"I'll remind you," Keishin said. "Come hang out for a bit, your shoulders look all stiff anyway. I can massage 'em for you." Takeda turned in his chair at the offer of a massage.

"Well... I guess I have been working pretty nonstop," he said uncertainly. Keishin grinned. He was winning already.

"Come on, Sensei. You won't get behind on your work, it's just for a little bit." Ittetsu shrugged, and acquiesced, coming over to sit on the couch with him. Keishin motioned for him to turn to the side, and sat up behind him to start kneading his stiff shoulders.

"Mmm... that is nice," Takeda admitted softly as Ukai rubbed in circles. "And I did invite you over after all, I should be paying more attention to you."

"It's no big," Keishin assured him. "You just get too caught up in what you're doin'." The teacher nodded, closing his eyes.

"I know," he sighed. "But you overwork yourself too, Ukai-kun. You can't really talk."

"Yeah, fair." His hands worked their way down Takeda's back, and back up again, before clapping on his shoulders. "All done." Sensei turned and smiled at him.

"Thank you," he said warmly, leaning against the blond's chest. "I do feel better now..." Keishin nodded, cheeks dusting pink. He still wasn't used to this kind of affection from Takeda, as much as he liked it. He pressed a kiss to the top of the teacher's head, short messy hair brushing against his nose.

"Don't mention it," he murmured. He wrapped his arms around Takeda's small form.

"I'm really happy..." Ittetsu said quietly.

"Hm?" Keishin didn't quite catch that.

"I'm really happy we're together, Ukai-kun," he repeated, looking up at Keishin, who was blushing again.

"O-oh," the coach stammered. "Me too Sensei. I dunno why you like me so much, but I'm glad you do." Takeda frowned, and took Ukai's face in his hands. He had that determined look in his eyes again.

"Everything about you is why," Takeda said honestly. Keishin's eyes widened, and he opened his mouth, but Ittetsu wasn't finished. "You go above and beyond for your family and for the volleyball team, and you don't even give it a second thought. You don't even think it's remarkable that you do all that! And you look after everybody, trying to keep your mom from having to push herself too much, scolding me for eating poorly, treating the team to dinner after they lost their inter-high match... you're such a good person, Ukai-kun, and I don't think you even realize it. I... want to be the one who looks after you, when you're busy caring for everyone else."

Keishin was speechless. He tried to look away, but Takeda was holding his head so he really couldn't do much more than avert his eyes.

"Sorry... was that too cliche? I read a lot of books, so sometimes I worry I can get a little overdramatic..." Takeda trailed off. He dropped his hands from Ukai's cheeks, only for the blond to grab them insistently.

"No, it's not- don't apologize for how you talk, I love when you do that," Keishin insisted. Ittetsu's face colored to match his boyfriend's, and he smiled again. "Thanks... for saying that stuff about me."

"I mean it," Sensei promised. "Although, it really helps your case that you're gorgeous." The teacher chuckled nervously, and Keishin laughed with him.

"So you said you liked me ever since the training camp... would seeing me shirtless have had anything to do with that epiphany?" he asked with a smirk. Takeda laughed harder.

"You're right on the money, actually. I'm not even usually attracted to men, but you sure caught my attention." Keishin let go of his hands and reached up to take Ittetsu's glasses off. He set them on the end table, and big, warm brown eyes gazed up at him.

"Yeah, well. You've got mine, too, so fair's fair," he said more softly. Takeda reached up behind his head, and tugged on his headband until it came free. Soft, blond locks fell around Keishin's face, effortlessly framing his features like he'd styled it this way on purpose. Takeda's fingers wove into his hair, and he tugged the larger man down for a kiss.

Keishin hummed pleasantly and kissed him back. It felt so good to be wanted in the sweet, earnest way that Takeda wanted him. A thrill ran through him and he tugged Sensei closer, kissed him deeper. Ittetsu smiled against his mouth, and Keishin felt full to bursting with affection. This man wanted to look after him, know everything about him, make him happy... He was so damn lucky. When Takeda's tongue nudged past his lips, he invited him freely, his own tongue responding in kind as their bodies moved even closer. Suddenly Keishin was struck by just how much he wanted Sensei, wanted to touch him and hold him until they were both exhausted and satisfied, wrapped up in each other's arms. He broke the kiss to press his lips to the teacher's neck, which earned him a gasp.

"Ukai-kun," Takeda said breathlessly, tilting his head to the side.

"Too much?" Keishin murmured against the skin.

"No, no... keep going." He obliged, trailing wet kisses down the teacher's neck and relishing the soft sighs the smaller man let out with each contact. Ukai paused at the collar of Takeda's shirt, but Takeda quickly undid the top few buttons, and he took that as a signal to continue. Keishin affixed his mouth to his collarbone and sucked.

"U-ukai-kun! You're going to leave a mark," Takeda protested.

"You don't have to work for nearly two weeks," Ukai pointed out. "And it's below your collar." Takeda sighed.

"Alright, alright," he conceded. "But nothing above the collar. Even if I don't have to work, I still have to go out and be seen by other people." Keishin nodded.

"You got it," he agreed, kissing the spot before latching on again. He rubbed Sensei's back as he marked his skin, and sat back to admire his work when he was done. "Damn. You mark easy, Sensei."

"Shut up," the teacher groaned, blushing. Keishin kissed him on the jaw. "Can I take your shirt off?"

"Wha- yeah, go ahead," Ukai said. He raised his arms over his head to make it easier, inwardly relieved. He didn't want to push Takeda to be physical after all, but it looked like that wasn't a concern. Takeda grabbed the hem of Ukai's t-shirt, and pulled it up over his head. Keishin watched the teacher's eyes look him up and down, and he gained a bit more confidence.

"You really are handsome, Ukai-kun," Ittetsu said softly. Keishin blushed lightly, then considerably darker when Sensei nudged him backward against the throw pillows and laid alongside him. The teacher's small, soft hand rested on his chest, undoubtedly feeling his heartbeat quicken under his touch. Keishin turned to the side so he was facing Ittetsu, and kissed him again, much more sensually than before.

They stayed like that for the longest time, just kissing, chest to chest on the couch. But eventually, Keishin ever so gently slipped one of his legs between Takeda's, and in a surge of confidence, nudged it upward. Takeda's breath caught as Keishin's thigh pressed against his dick, and he instinctively tilted his hips into the sensation. Encouraged, Ukai repeated the motion, nudging up against him and eliciting a soft moan.

"Is this okay, Sensei?" he asked, barely above a whisper. Takeda only nodded, and held him tighter. Keishin started slowly, repeatedly pressing his thigh up against him, absolutely reveling in the little sounds the teacher made in response. God, it had been so long since he'd been intimate with anyone, and this was Sensei, and Keishin was in heaven.

"Ukai-kun..." Ittetsu moaned, squeezing him tightly. Fuck, that did things to him. Keishin didn't want to push his luck, but this was going so well, and he wanted so badly to hear more of Takeda's voice. He reached down between them, and dragged upward on Takeda's length with his hand. "Ah- Ukai- wait!" At that, Keishin stopped, and withdrew his hand.

"Sensei? You alright?" he bit his lip. Shit. He shouldn't have pushed his damn luck. Ittetsu smiled at him, though his cheeks were burning red.

"I'm fine, just- not yet. We've only been together a couple days, and-"

"Okay," Keishin cut him off. "Don't have to explain, if you're not cool with it you're not cool with it." He smiled reassuringly, and Takeda smiled back.

"Thank you," he said, sitting up. "Do you want to maybe watch another movie, and just cuddle for a while?" Keishin sat up and picked up his shirt, pulling it back on.

"Yeah, sure. You wanna watch another one of those animated things?" he asked. He couldn't lie, he was a little disappointed. But spending the evening snuggled up with Takeda wasn't something he'd pass up.

"Sure," Ittetsu said. He got up and went over to his shelves to pick one out, and Ukai headed for the balcony.

"I'm gonna have a smoke real quick while you set that up, okay?"

"By all means." Keishin stepped out and lit up like always. He looked up at the cloudy night sky, watching the smoke curl upward and disappear each time he exhaled. Sensei was right. It was pretty early in their relationship to be touching each other like that. Keishin’s previous relationships had moved pretty fast, but this was Takeda… this was different from any of his prior, hasty flings from a couple years ago.

He went back inside and sat down next to Ittetsu, who was already cozy on the couch wrapped up in a blanket. The teacher held up the end of the blanket for Ukai to get under, and he took the offer with a soft smile. He kissed Sensei on the temple and draped an arm around his shoulders, and they settled in to watch the movie.

By the halfway point, Takeda was fast asleep, and Keishin couldn’t help but grin. Overworked himself, Keishin thought. When the movie ended, he gingerly picked up his diminutive boyfriend, carrying him to his bedroom to lay him gently on the bed. Takeda didn’t stir the entire time, he must have really been exhausted. Keishin smiled at him from the doorway, before flipping off the lights, gathering his keys and coat, and slipping out of the apartment.

Keishin was pretty sure he was in love.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo no sex yet. Take-chan is too shy for that just yet. But look forward to it!  
> We're coming up on the end of this fic, there will probably be 2 more chapters after this one. Thanks to everyone who has supported this and left nice comments :') they make my day.


	11. Happy Birthday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Takeda's birthday! (which is coincidentally the day after mine o:)

Ukai and Takeda spent most of the rest of break the very same way. Takeda graded papers while Ukai was at work, and when he was off, they cuddled up together in Takeda’s apartment with movies, and occasionally alcohol. Ittetsu hadn’t had a nicer break in years. He was almost reluctant to go back to work, even though he loved his job. But there were students to teach, and a whole new volleyball tournament to prepare for, so it was back to work for him.

A few days into the new semester, Ukai texted him to ask him if he had plans for that Saturday, and it took a glance at his calendar for Ittetsu to remember that Saturday was his birthday. His chest tightened. He couldn’t even remember telling Keishin when his birthday was, but apparently, he knew and wanted to set aside time together. Well, maybe it was a coincidence. The two of them did spend a lot of time together lately. But Ittetsu couldn’t help feeling excited as he replied that he was free that day. His birthdays were never eventful, usually he’d receive well wishes from his coworkers, and sometimes from his students, and his parents would give him a call. But it had been quite a while since he had celebrated beyond that.

Ukai texted him again, asking if he wanted to go to dinner and spend some time together afterward on Saturday. Takeda smiled, and replied that he would love to. Even if Keishin didn’t realize it was his birthday, Ittetsu couldn’t think of a better way to spend that day than with his boyfriend.

\---

On Saturday the 10th around 4:00, Ukai knocked on Takeda’s door as planned. Ittetsu opened the door, and his eyebrows rose at the sight of Keishin in a blue button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, and dark colored jeans. Keishin never wore dress shirts, he thought, but it was certainly a nice look for him. Ittetsu stepped out of the apartment and smooched him on the cheek.

“You look nice, Ukai-kun,” he hummed.

“Heh, thanks. Happy birthday, Sensei,” Keishin said. Takeda’s face lit up; he did plan something for this! Oh this was exciting, nobody had surprised him for his birthday since he was in college.

“Thank you!” he chirped as they descended the stairs to the ground floor. “I suspected you had something up your sleeve when you asked about today. I really appreciate you remembering.” Keishin blushed lightly, and led Takeda out to his little yellow car. Ittetsu still couldn’t get over that car, it didn’t fit Keishin at all and he found it quite adorable.

“Course I remembered,” Ukai scoffed, getting in and starting the car once Takeda was seated. “Well, I had to check your school ID badge, but point is, I made sure to set something up.” Ittetsu giggled.

“Nobody ever does anything for my birthday,” he said. “This is really special.” Ukai blushed again, scowling in that cute way he did when he was embarrassed.

“It’s no big,” he mumbled.

Within a few minutes they arrived at a sushi shop, one of the nicer places in town. Ukai insisted before they even ordered that he pay for everything, and that Takeda order whatever he wanted. Takeda was overjoyed. They each ordered two makizushi rolls, and halfway through dinner, Ittetsu took Keishin's hand under the table. 

"Thank you so much, Ukai-kun," he gushed as they left the restaurant. Keishin shook his head.

"Man, you're easy to please, Sensei. I haven't even told you the best part of tonight, y'know."

"Wha- best part?" There was more? 

"Yeah," Ukai chuckled. "We go out to dinner pretty often, that's not really a birthday gift. Here." He handed Takeda two small slips of paper, and the teacher's eyes widened.

"We're- we're going to a stage play?" he stammered. "A Dark Night's Passing is one of my favorite novels... How did you know that, Ukai-kun?" Keishin smiled, and took one of the tickets back. 

"I didn't," he said truthfully. "I saw an advertisement for the play in the paper last week, and it said this was a 'masterwork of modern japanese literature', so I figured it was up your alley." Takeda wanted so badly to kiss his boyfriend right then, but they were in the middle of a parking lot, so he decided it could wait. 

"Gosh... Thank you," Ittetsu gushed. "You didn't have to do all this for me, Ukai-kun." They got into the car, and Ukai reached over to squeeze his hand.

"It's worth it just for the look on your face right now," he teased lightly. "Now you know why I'm dressed up."

"I love you," Takeda blurted. As soon as he realized he'd said it, he blushed a deep scarlet. Keishin pursed his lips and stared straight ahead at the road, his own cheeks coloring a little too. "You- you don't have to- I shouldn't have- I'm sorry-" he sputtered, but Keishin shook his head. 

"It's fine," the blond said, voice sounding strained. "I... love you too, Sensei." His grip tightened on the steering wheel, and his face flushed deeper, and Ittetsu had never felt more relieved. 

"You do?"

"Yeah," Keishin mumbled. Takeda beamed, and leaned over to give him a quick peck on the cheek. 

"This is such a wonderful birthday," he said warmly. 

"We haven't even seen the damn play yet, Sensei," Ukai grumbled. But Ittetsu didn't stop smiling the whole way to the theater. 

\---

The play was everything Takeda had hoped for from a live adaption of the novel. And Ukai was a good sport, though Takeda could tell he wasn't particularly into it. They discreetly held hands throughout the show, and Ittetsu was sure he'd never had a better birthday. Well, maybe when he was little. But as they left the theater, his heart was light, and full of affection for the man beside him. 

"So... Happy birthday," Keishin said quietly as they got into his car once again. Ittetsu leaned across the console and kissed him full on the mouth, passerbys be damned. Ukai made that same, cute noise he always made when he was unexpectedly kissed, and Takeda sat back with a happy sigh. 

"I had a really wonderful time tonight, Ukai-kun," he said softly. "Thank you." Keishin just nodded, and drove off, back toward Sensei's apartment. 

When they arrived, Keishin walked him back up to his door. Ittetsu unlocked his apartment, and Keishin leaned down to give him a chaste kiss goodnight. 

"Sweet dreams- mm!" He couldn't finish before Takeda was kissing him again, and pulling him inside. The teacher shut the door, and Keishin blinked at him, speechless for a moment.

"Please stay," Ittetsu insisted, blushing. 

"Like- Stay the night?" Ukai asked in disbelief.

"Yes," Ittetsu said steadfastly. "I- won't stop you from going home of course, but... I want you to stay." Keishin locked the door to the apartment and took his hand, leading the way to Takeda's bedroom without even kicking his shoes off. He took the teacher's head in his hands and kissed him deeply, almost hungrily. Ittetsu gripped the front of his shirt and responded just as earnestly, noting that his boyfriend was wearing that body spray again.

"Are you sure about this Sensei?" Keishin asked breathlessly, loosening Takeda's tie. 

"I-I'm sure," Ittetsu said as firmly as possible. Truthfully, he was nervous. He'd never slept with a man before, and he didn't know exactly what to expect. But he trusted Keishin, and he wanted to take that step with him tonight. Keishin nodded and tossed Ittetsu's tie aside, wasting no time before working his shirt open and sliding it off of his shoulders.

"Do you have supplies?" Ukai asked. 

"Supplies, like condoms?" 

"Yeah... And, um. Lube," Keishin said awkwardly. "I have some in my car if you don't." Ittetsu couldn't help but giggle at that. Of course Ukai had come prepared.

"Yes, I have them," he assured. He sat down in the middle of his bed, and shyly motioned for Ukai to join him. The blond kicked his shoes off and climbed onto the bed with him, blushing all over again. Gosh, Ukai was cute, he thought. Ittetsu leaned forward and started unbuttoning the coach's dress shirt for him, sticking his tongue out in concentration as he went. He'd never undressed a man, and he'd never realized that men's shirts buttoned on the opposite side from women's shirts. This was actually kind of embarrassing... he was taking forever. 

"Need a hand, Sensei?" Ukai chuckled, reaching down to finish the job for him. 

"I could have done it," Takeda protested. Keishin just shrugged, sliding his shirt off and leaving him in his thin undershirt. 

"Yeah, but now it's done," he said, pulling the undershirt over his head. Takeda let out a shaky breath at the sight of Keishin's muscular torso, and reached out to run his fingers down the man's broad chest. Goosebumps raised over the larger man's skin at the contact. "Shit... your hands are cold," Ukai laughed. 

"Maybe you're just hot," Takeda said, unable to keep a straight face. He giggled, and Keishin gave him the most unimpressed look he could muster. 

"I'll forgive that because it's your birthday," he said. Takeda just giggled harder. "Really though. If you don't wanna do this, I'm not gonna be mad. Okay?" 

"I want this," Takeda said insistently. "I appreciate you not pushing me, but- I want you, Ukai-kun." They sat there for a moment, blushing and looking anywhere but at each other. Ukai moved first, pushing Ittetsu back to lay against the pillows. He kissed the smaller man in the center of his chest, and trailed his fingers down his torso to his belt. Oh. Takeda's breath hitched. He nodded when Keishin looked up at him for permission, and soon the blond was undoing his belt, then his pants, and oh gosh... before he knew it Ittetsu was in only boxers and socks. 

"You know... you're really attractive," Ukai murmured, hands resting on the teacher's small hips. Takeda smiled shyly, admiring the way Ukai's arm muscles flexed when he rubbed circles in Ittetsu's hipbones with his thumbs. 

"Th-thank you," he breathed. "You're the one who's gorgeous though- I always catch myself looking at you, even when we're supposed to be working." He chuckled lightly, and Ukai kissed his stomach. 

"Shit, Sensei, you think you're the only one? I'm always having these thoughts about you, and tellin' myself not to be such a damn pervert..." Takeda looked genuinely surprised, and laughed again. 

"I guess I don't see myself as particularly sexy," he admitted. Ukai kissed down his abdomen, and his fingers played along Takeda's waistband. 

"Yeah, well... I do," he murmured. "Can I?" Ittetsu swallowed, and nodded. Keishin slid his boxers down over his hips and off, taking his socks with them for good measure. Ittetsu immediately felt the urge to cover up, but he stopped himself. Keishin gently nudged his legs apart and settled between them, kissing Ittetsu's hip and making him gasp. 

"Ukai-kun, your headband," he said weakly. Keishin raised an eyebrow, and pulled it out of his hair, letting it fall free. The ends of his blond locks brushed Takeda's hip, and he giggled. 

"You really like me with my hair down, don'tcha?" Ukai remarked. 

"I really do," Takeda admitted. "It's really cute." He thought he heard Keishin grumble something about not being cute, but he couldn't be sure. And the thought was all but gone from his head when his boyfriend dragged his tongue up the underside of his cock. "Aah-!"

Keishin grinned up at him, and sunk his mouth down onto his length, eliciting another sharp gasp. Takeda's head dropped back against the pillow involuntarily, and he gripped the comforter beneath him. Ukai was  _good_ at this. Ittetsu let out a shameless moan as Keishin dragged upward on him, tongue curling expertly against his tip. Oh  _god_. Takeda had had blowjobs before, but this was something else. He sat up enough to watch Ukai's blond head lower again, pulling another moan from Ittetsu's throat. The pace wasn't fast, but every little movement his boyfriend made had a purpose, every little flick of his tongue was exactly what Ittetsu needed. He wasn't going to last if Keishin kept this up, nearly swallowing him like he was... 

"Ukai-kun," he whined, voice sounding more desperate than he intended. Keishin sunk down on him again, and Takeda saw stars. "I- wait-" Ukai stopped, and looked up at him with concern. 

"Everything okay, Sensei?" he asked. Takeda nodded, and finally had the sense to take his glasses off and set them aside. 

"I-yeah, everything's fine, you're just  _really_ good at that, and," he couldn't finish his sentence. Fuck, it was embarrassing admitting how easy it was to bring him to the edge.

"You were gonna come, is that it?" Ukai asked, a grin creeping onto his face. Takeda groaned, and nodded. "Hey, don't worry about it. Hell, I haven't gotten any action in a couple years, so I'm probably not that much better off." Ittetsu laughed shyly, and sat up. 

"You either?" he chuckled. "It's been a while for me, too." Keishin sat back and unbuckled his own belt. 

"That reminds me. Have you ever been with a guy before?" the blond asked. 

"No, not once," Takeda admitted. "I know the basics though." Ukai seemed relieved by that. 

"Okay, that makes this easier," the coach said. "How do you wanna do this, then? I'm cool with either, so if you don't feel comfortable with one or the other, we're good..." Takeda bit his lip. He'd thought about this before, and even though the idea of bottoming was a little daunting, the thought of Keishin over him, holding him, moving through him... it was exhilarating. 

"What do you prefer, Ukai-kun?" he asked. 

"Uh, well, I'm more of a top," Keishin said, looking away. "But seriously, it's up to you. I'm gonna enjoy this regardless, so... just whatever you're comfortable with."

"I think I want to receive," Ittetsu said, reddening. "Just be patient with me." He touched Keishin's arm, feeling the firm, curving muscles beneath the skin. Ukai was so strong and beautiful... he wanted to feel that strength tonight. 

"Course I will," Keishin promised. He undid his jeans, and soon realized he'd have to stand up to get them all the way off. He stripped out of them, but left his boxer briefs on for the time being. Ittetsu blushed, and marveled at him. His boyfriend truly was stunning, and it was impossible to ignore the outline of his erection in his snug underwear. Keishin sat back down on the bed, and Ittetsu got a brand new bottle of lube from his bedside table. The safety seal was still on it and everything. Keishin grinned, and broke the seal to flip open the cap and coat a few of his fingers. 

"H-how do you want me to lay?" Ittetsu asked, suddenly nervous. Keishin shrugged. 

"However you want. It's easier if you're on your front, but on your back is fine too," he said. Ittetsu turned around and laid on his stomach, heartbeat picking up. This was really happening... Keishin whistled. 

"The view's real good from here," he remarked, earning an exasperated groan from Takeda. 

"Shut uppp," the teacher complained. Keishin laid on his side next to him, and kissed the side of his head. 

"Ready?" he asked. Takeda nodded, and Ukai rested a finger against his entrance, making him gasp. "Ah- that's a little cold!"

"Yeah, don't worry. That doesn't last long," Ukai chuckled. He slowly, gently pressed his finger inside, watching Takeda's face carefully. Ittetsu let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. 

"That's... a really weird feeling," he murmured. 

"Try to relax your muscles," Keishin instructed him. "You gotta do it consciously- there you go." He moved nice and slow, in and out, just letting Sensei get used to the sensation. But honestly, for his first time, the older man was responding really well. After a minute or two, Keishin nudged his second finger up alongside the first. "I'm gonna add another, alright?"

"Y-yeah, go ahead," Ittetsu breathed. His eyes squeezed shut as Ukai's ring finger breached him. Okay, that hurt a little, but he could do this... he willed himself to relax, and Keishin kissed his shoulder a couple times in succession. 

"You're doin' good," the blond encouraged. He waited until Ittetsu's expression changed to a more relaxed one, and started spreading his fingers apart. That earned him another sharp gasp from the teacher, but he took it in stride, and soon Keishin was withdrawing the digits. 

"Am I ready?" Takeda asked, turning to look at him. 

"I dunno, you tell me," Keishin snorted. "I think you're prepped enough, if that's what you mean." Takeda rolled his eyes. 

"Yes, that's what I meant. Here-" he pulled a box of condoms from his drawer and handed it to Ukai. Ukai took one from the box, and stuck the corner of the wrapper in his mouth while he slid his boxer briefs off. Ittetsu blushed. Keishin was bigger than him, and neatly groomed; he suddenly wondered if he should have trimmed or something, but that thought didn't last long because soon the coach was rolling the condom down over his dick, and leaning down to kiss Takeda. 

"Do you wanna lay on your back?" Keishin asked. 

"Yeah," Ittetsu agreed. "If I lay on my stomach I won't be able to see you, and that'd be a darn shame." He laid back with his head on his pillow, and watched nervously as Ukai added lube to his length. The blond lifted Takeda's legs up and settled between them, lining himself up with his opening. 

"Tell me when," Keishin breathed, cheeks flushed again. 

"Please..." Takeda responded. He tugged him closer, and Keishin nodded. He rocked his hips forward, pushing into Takeda with a low groan of satisfaction. Ittetsu's fingers dug into the comforter and he made sure to relax, just like before. God, that was a strange feeling. Keishin stopped once he was in him to the hilt, and bowed his head to kiss Takeda's shoulder. 

"Fuck," he breathed. "You still doing okay?"

"Yes..." Ittetsu had never felt so close to another human being in all his life. Sure, he'd had sex, but Keishin was  _in_ him, and all around him, and it was a whole new experience. "You can move..." Keishin nodded, and started slowly rolling his hips, letting out soft, breathy sounds that Ittetsu could just barely catch. 

"Hah... Sensei," he sighed, and Takeda's heart swelled. He wrapped his arms tightly around Ukai, trying to get even closer to the man. Steadily, Ukai increased in speed, and oh.

"Ukai-kun," he moaned, tilting his hips upward. 

"Good?" the blond asked, sounding a little worried. 

"Y-yes... please go faster, Ukai-kun..." Keishin wasted no time obliging, and Ittetsu arched his back in pleasure. "Oh- please," he gasped, digging his nails into Keishin's sturdy shoulders.

Keishin couldn't help himself, he picked up the pace even more, and started rocking harder into Takeda. It had been far too long since he'd had sex, and Ittetsu was divine; the sounds coming from the little teacher were absolutely melodic to Keishin, and they spurred him on. He changed his angle a little, and kissed Ittetsu's neck. He wanted to give his boyfriend as much pleasure tonight as he could, it was his birthday after all. 

"Aah- Ukai-kun," Takeda pleaded. "Please don't stop- Ukai-kun!" 

"Keishin," Ukai said breathlessly. "Call me- my given name." Takeda's eyes widened and he looked up at Keishin like he'd just given him the world. 

"Okay," he agreed. "K-keishin." Ukai thrust his hips forward, and the teacher keened. His name had never sounded so beautiful. He had to hear it again, he decided. 

"Ahh- please tell me if it's too much," he said, before picking up speed even more. Each snap of his hips drew another beautiful sound from Ittetsu's mouth. 

"I will- oh,  _Keishin_ ," Takeda cried, hanging on for dear life. Ukai grit his teeth. He was close, and though he could hold back and keep going if he wanted to, he didn't want to put too much strain on his boyfriend. 

"Sensei..." he said. "I'm there." Takeda just nodded. Keishin reached down between them and wrapped his hand around Ittetsu's cock, giving him only a few quick tugs before he was gone. Takeda's back arched, and his mouth fell open in a silent cry as he came. If Keishin had ever seen something more stunning, he couldn't think of it now... He bucked his hips a few more times, and stilled with one last breathless moan as his own orgasm washed over him. 

"Keishin..." Ittetsu murmured, opening his eyes to look up at his boyfriend. Keishin pulled out, and smiled down at him. They just gazed at each other, both trying to catch their breath for a moment. "I love you." 

"I love you too," Ukai replied, kissing him on the forehead. He sat up, and disposed of the condom in the wastebasket next to the bed while Takeda cleaned himself up with a tissue. Ittetsu grabbed him around the waist, and tugged him down to kiss him sweetly. 

"That was... wow," Ittetsu laughed. "That was amazing... thank you." Keishin pulled the covers out from under them and snuggled up to Takeda, wrapping his arms around him protectively. Ittetsu reached over and switched off the lamp. 

"Happy birthday Sensei," Ukai murmured, already feeling sleepy. He couldn't remember being happier than this. Not once had he felt more loved, or more whole. Ittetsu squeezed him and tucked his head under Keishin's chin. 

"Goodnight, Keishin," he said happily. 

"Night."

And they drifted off together, blissfully wrapped in each other's arms. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Congrats on the sex \o/
> 
> Next chapter will be the last. Thank you for sticking with this story! I have really enjoyed writing these cuties. I do have another idea for an ukatake fic, so hopefully you will see more from me soon!


	12. Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So i have realized that I kind of screwed up the time of year- I thought that Spring Tournament implied that it took place in THE SPRING after winter break, but it clearly doesn't, in the last episode they said the preliminaries start in october??? so for the sake of this fic, the timeline is wrong, but i am going to stick with what i've already written because Takeda's birthday is in January and I want to keep their cute birthday date night the same. So please humor me on this!

When Keishin awoke the next morning, Takeda was still fast asleep, snug in his arms and warm against his chest. His heart skipped, and he buried his nose in the teacher’s short, dark locks. They were still naked, but now instead of throes of pleasure, they had serene, comfortable closeness beneath the blankets. Keishin gently squeezed his tiny boyfriend. What a way to wake up.

“Mm…” Ittetsu stirred, and looked up at Keishin with bleary eyes. “Good morning.” Keishin kissed him, soft and sweet.

“Morning Sensei,” he murmured, voice low from disuse. “Gotta say, you’ve got a pretty comfy bed.” Ittetsu laughed softly.

“Don’t I? I’ve had it since college but I see no need to get a new one,” he said. He pecked Ukai on the jaw. “You can sleep here any time, U- Keishin.” The coach’s chest tightened. Plenty of people called him by his given name, hell, most of the old regulars at the store still talked to him like he was a little kid. But hearing it in Takeda’s voice just did something to him. He wondered…

“I’ll have to take you up on that, Ittetsu,” he said, grinning as Takeda’s cheeks flushed pink. “Is it okay if I call you that?”

“Yes!” Ittetsu said quickly. “I think if we’re to the point where we’re making love, we can use each other’s given names.”

“Yeah, you got a point there.” Making love, huh? Ittetsu was such a romantic. “You want an omelet? I figure I’ll make breakfast.” Ittetsu squeezed him.

“Let’s stay here a little while,” he suggested. “I don’t want to get up yet… you’re so comfy.” Ukai smiled, and kissed his forehead.

“Fine. You talked me into it.” He pulled the covers up a little higher, and closed his eyes.

\---

Sensei ended up falling back asleep, so after a while, Keishin got up and slipped his boxer briefs back on, then headed to the kitchen to start breakfast for the both of them. He could get used to living like this, coming home with Ittetsu, sharing his bed, waking up together… It was still awfully early in their relationship for them to consider moving in together, but it was really nice to think about.

When the omelets were done, Keishin went back to Takeda’s room and gently shook him by the shoulder. “Sensei, breakfast,” he said. The teacher shook his head and hid his face in his pillow. “It’s late in the morning anyway, you shouldn’t oversleep too much.”

“Mmmh… fine,” Ittetsu agreed, sitting up. His hair was even more tousled than usual, which Keishin couldn’t help smiling at.

“I’ll let you get dressed,” Ukai said, turning to leave. Takeda made a startled noise at the sight of his bare back, and he turned. “Sensei? You okay?”

“Oh my god, your back,” Ittetsu said weakly, hiding his face in his hands. Confused, Keishin walked over to the mirror and looked over his shoulder at his back.

His upper back was absolutely covered in long, red lines.

“Damn, you really have some talons on you,” he remarked with a laugh.

“I’m sorry,” Takeda groaned. “I didn’t even realize I was doing it. Does it hurt?” Keishin poked one of the more prominent scratch marks.

“Nope. Don’t feel a thing. Seriously, don’t sweat it, nobody’s gonna see it under my clothes. I actually think it’s kinda hot.” Ittetsu blushed. He still felt kind of bad for digging his nails in so hard, it must have been painful at the time. “Anyway, breakfast is up, so get some clothes on.” Ukai left the room, and Takeda stood up. Okay, so he was a little sore from last night, he noted. He put on some sweatpants and a t-shirt for the time being, and went out to the kitchen.

“You alright?” Keishin asked, frowning. “You’re walking different, I didn’t push you too much did I?” Takeda waved his hand dismissively as he sat down. Ow. That hurt a little bit too.

“I’m just a tad sore is all,” he assured his boyfriend. “That’s to be expected, isn’t it?”

“Mm, yeah, for some people. I’ll be more careful next time.”

“Next time, hmm?” Ittetsu teased. The blond flicked a piece of egg at him.

“You said earlier I could sleep in your bed whenever I wanted, I guess I assumed,” he sassed back.

“You can, but we have to have a line of pillows between us,” Ittetsu giggled. Keishin broke a smile.

“Still worth it.” Ittetsu laughed louder, and cut into his omelet. Mmm, Keishin’s cooking always smelled so wonderful. He wished he could wake up or come home to his boyfriend’s cooking every day. Maybe he’d come home while the coach was in the middle of preparing dinner, and he’d come up behind him, wrap his arms around him, and tell him he was home.

“By the way, Ittetsu,” Ukai said. Gosh, it was so weird being called Ittetsu. Nobody really called him that lately, it was always Sensei, or sometimes Takeda-san. But it made him feel closer with Keishin when he said it, like it was something only Keishin could call him.

“Mm?” he hummed. “What?”

“I got a text this morning from Nekomata-san, he wants to know if Karasuno has the same spring break as Nekoma. I told him we do, and he said he’d contact me again, so who knows what that’s supposed to mean.”

“I hope he wants to do more practice matches! The team got so fired up last time, I’m sure they’d be thrilled,” Ittetsu said brightly. He’d been thinking of scheduling another training camp for spring break, and if Nekoma wanted to participate, that would be wonderful.

“Yeah, that’s what I’m thinking he means, but you’d think he would just say so?” Keishin pointed out. “Maybe he’s organizing something with multiple schools, or arranging for both teams to go see a higher level tournament or something.”

“Well, either way, it’s exciting,” Ittetsu hummed.

“Yeah. But we should focus on getting the team back in shape for the spring, for now. I really doubt anyone’s been conditioning over the break, based on their running times,” Keishin said with a scowl. Takeda chuckled.

“Such a slave driver,” he teased. “You’re a good coach, Keishin. And you thought you didn’t have it in you.” Ukai’s cheeks dusted pink.

“Yeah well… you bring out the best in me,” he mumbled. They finished their breakfast, and although it was noon, returned to Ittetsu’s bed to snuggle just a little more before Keishin had to go.

\---

Back at practice, Keishin and Ittetsu still called each other Ukai-kun and Sensei, but even still, the team was starting to catch on. Sugawara gave them the occasional knowing smile, which always earned him a glare from Ukai, but it was Hinata that was really obvious. Someone must have screwed up and told him, because the redhead kept glancing over at them and whispering with his teammates. Eventually, the whole damn team seemed to be in on the secret, and Keishin was sick of pretending.

“Okay, look,” he said flatly after practice one day. “What’s the rumor of the week, cause you guys are obviously all whispering about something, and looking over at me and your Sensei.” Takeda’s eyebrows rose. He hadn’t been expecting Keishin to bring this up with the team, and oh lord. He wasn’t ready for this.

“Kageyama said you’re dating!” Hinata supplied immediately. Kageyama grabbed him by the shirt collar, and Daichi did the same to Kageyama, while the other team members shifted uncomfortably.

“Thanks Kageyama,” Keishin said crossly. “Whether we’re dating or not doesn’t affect your tournament record, so worry about it on your own time.”

“So… Take-chan? Are you?” Tanaka asked. Ittetsu turned red and held up his hands. Keishin made a noise of frustration and folded his arms.

“For crying out loud. Yes. We’re dating. Now will you get back to having normal practices, and gossiping about people your own age?” he said irritably. The team stood in silence for a moment, just looking at each other, until

“Congratulations!” Nishinoya said cheerfully. The other boys nodded, and a few of them echoed their congratulations. Takeda covered his face with his hands, and Keishin just nodded at the boys.

“Yeah yeah, thanks. Go home, practice is done.” He grabbed Takeda by the arm and led him out of the gym, rescuing him from his embarrassment.

“Sorry about that,” he grumbled. “It was pissing me off, they weren’t gonna let it go.”

“It’s okay,” Ittetsu said honestly. “Actually, I’m glad… they’re all so happy for us, looks like we didn’t have so much to worry about after all.”

“Yeah… you’re right,” Keishin admitted. “They’re good kids. For nosy brats.” He looked up at the sky. It was getting warmer lately… and he was happy. Truly happy.

\---

A few days later, Ukai’s grandpa stopped by the store. “Hey gramps, haven’t seen you here in forever,” Keishin remarked.

“I tend to come when you’re not working,” Ikkei explained. Keishin scowled at him. “Just by coincidence, don’t give me that look. How have you been, Keishin? Is coaching too much for you yet?”

“As if,” he scoffed. “Nekomata has apparently chosen me as his new rival, he says I look like you. Which is a lie if I ever heard one.”

“You’d have to be much more handsome by now,” Ikkei agreed, and Keishin threw a pack of gum at him forcefully. He dodged it, and chuckled. “Anyway, what’s been going on in your life, besides coaching? Your mother says you’ve been spending a lot of time away from home.”

“Nothing,” Keishin deadpanned. “Working, coaching, working, playing with the neighborhood team, what else is there to mention?” He wasn’t about to gush about his romantic life to his crotchety old grandpa.

“Your mother mentioned someone brought over curry for you,” Ikkei pressed, enjoying the way Keishin’s eyebrows furrowed in frustration. “What’s his name?”

“None of your damn business, you nosy old fart!” Keishin groused, pulling out a cigarette. How the fuck did his grandpa even know he was gay? And if he knew, why hadn’t he pointed it out? His grandpa liked to rib him about everything.

“I’m not trying to push your buttons,” Ikkei said half-truthfully. Keishin took a drag and sighed, letting the smoke pour from his lips.

“…His name’s Takeda,” he mumbled. His cheeks flushed lightly.

“Takeda,” the older man mused. “The same Takeda who took over for me after I retired?” Keishin bristled. Fuck. He didn’t know his grandpa knew Sensei.

“Yeah. Same guy.” Ikkei clapped him on the shoulder.

“Are you happy?” he asked, smiling at his grandson. Keishin looked up at him.

“I… yeah. I’m happy,” he said. Ikkei patted him on the shoulder, and Keishin brushed his hand off. “Come off it.”

“I’m glad to hear that, Keishin,” his grandpa said genuinely. “You’d better treat him right, though. He’s a good kid, too good for your scruffy ass.” Keishin stood up and pointed at the door.

“Get out!” he barked. Ugh. His grandpa just loved to provoke him. “Of course I’m treating him right! Go away you wrinkled bastard!” Ikkei laughed, and waved on his way out.

“Good luck,” he said. “See you later.” Once his grandpa had gone, Keishin sat back down, breathing smoke out his nose. All being said, he was happy to have his grandpa’s support. And honestly, it was a little crazy that they’d only gotten together in the short time since he’d last talked to his grandpa. Takeda had just drawn him in… there was just something about him that felt right. Something about him Keishin couldn’t stay away from.

A text came in from Ittetsu, asking if he wanted to come over after work, and Keishin smiled. Even though he’d lived in this town his whole life, and he loved it dearly, Ittetsu was the one who made his heart truly feel at home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's done! \o/ Thank you for sticking with this story! I always struggle with conclusions so I don't know if this really holds up to the rest of the story, but I did my best. I do have another idea for an ukatake fic coming up, so stay tuned!


End file.
